Survey of the public schools of Lenoir County

















Edcuational Publication No. 73 Division of Supervision No. 17
SURVEY OF THE PUBLIC SCHOOLS OF LENOIR COUNTYBY
L. C. BROGDENDirector
MISS HATTIE S. PARROTTAssistant State Supervisor Rural Schools
JOHN J. BLAIRState Director of Schoolhouse Planning
W. F. CREDLEAssistant Director Schoolhouse Planning
E. E. SAMSCounty Superintendent of Lenoir County
THE GREAT SEAL OF THE STATE OF NORTH CAROLINA.
PUBLISHED BY THE STATE SUPERINTENDENT OF PUBLIC INSTRUCTIONRALEIGH,1924



CONTENTS

Introduction by State Superintendent of Public Instruction5
Preface7
PART I
The Present Educational Situation in Lenoir County
CHAPTERPAGE
I.Lenoir County, Physical Characteristics, Population, Taxable Wealth and Roads9
II.Present Plan for Meeting Educational Needs of Rural Children of County13
III.Are the Rural Pupils Studying All the Important Subjects They Should?14
IV.Are the Rural Pupils Having Each Day as Much Time as They Should on Certain Important Subjects?16
V.Are the Rural Pupils Attending School as Regularly as They Should?22
VI.Training, Experience and Annual Salary of Rural Teachers and the Teachers of the Kinston and LaGrange Schools29
VII.Under Present Plan are the Rural Pupils Reading, Spelling and Working Arithmetic as Well as They Should?34
VIII.Under the Present Plan are the Pupils Graded and Classified in Accordance with Their Ability to Advance?64
IX.How Much Education are the Rural Pupils Getting Under the Present Plan?73
X.Are the Rural Teachers Developing in the Pupils the Powers and Habits of Mind Essential in Making a Good Citizen?86
XI.Are the Rural Pupils Attending School in Buildings Adequately Constructed and Equipped?99
XII.How Much is it Costing to Teach a Rural Pupil Under the Present Plan?150
XIII.Can the Rural Pupils Have Equality of Opportunity Under the Present District Plan?156
PART II
Proposed Plan for Reorganization and Support
CHAPTERPAGE
XIV.Under What Plan Can Country Children and City Children Have Equality of Educational Opportunity?165
XV.The Proposed County-wide Plan for Lenoir County176
XVI.What This Plan Will Mean to the Children in the Various Consolidated Centers195
XVII.How This Proposed Plan Can Become Operative206
XVIII.Total Cost of Proposed Plan and Total County Tax Rate Needed210
XIX.Mutual Advantages to Town and Country in Joining in County-wide Plan217
XX.Summary of Findings and Conclusions227





INTRODUCTION

The Lenoir County Board of Education requested the State Department of Education to assist it in determining the exact condition of public education in that county and in setting up a modern, progressive program of reorganization and support.

The State Department of Education gladly accepted this invitation and undertook as comprehensive study of the conditions surrounding the public schools of the county as the time and means at its disposal would allow. Mr. L. C. Brogden, of the State Department of Education, was made director of the survey, and the following report has been submitted to the Lenoir County Board.

This bulletin sets forth in comprehensive, simple terms the results of this study. It not only presents the facts as they were found, but also undertakes to analyze them and to interpret them as a basis for a reorganization of the whole system in accordance with a county-wide plan. It advocates the following principles:

(a) That the support of public education in a county should rest on a uniform county-wide tax for a minimum school term of at least eight months for all the children of the county.

(b) That all school buildings should be constructed out of funds furnished by the county as a unit.

(c) That the scheme of reorganization should be on a county-wide basis, and should furnish standard educational opportunity to all the children in the county.

The bulletin presents most conclusive evidence that Lenoir County is financially able to support such a system of schools with a tax rate that cannot be considered burdensome. It should be worth a great deal to all the people of the State to know that such a promising scheme is within their reach if they wish to have it.

This report shows typically a complete cross-section of the condition of rural education in the greater part of North Carolina, and at the





same time shows that we are not without a remedy. For these reasons, and for many others that might be mentioned, I am causing this report to be printed in the belief that it will be of great assistance to county boards of education, to county superintendents of schools, and to all people who are interested in the education of the youth of the State for citizenship in a democracy like ours.

State Superintendent Public Instruction.

PREFACE

The specific purposes of this survey have been six-fold:

(a) To find the present plan of educating the white rural children of the county.

(b) To find the extent to which the educational needs of the children are being met under the present plan.

(c) To find the daily cost of teaching per pupil in daily attendance in these schools.

(d) On the basis of facts found, to work out a constructive county-wide plan of school consolidation anl school building.

(e) To indicate the particular advantages of the proposed county-wide plan.

(f) To find the total cost and the total county-wide tax rate needed to put this county-wide plan into successful operation.

We believe that this problem of working out a constructive county-wide plan of school consolidation and school building, providing for all the children of all the people adequate and modern elementary and Class A high schools in one unified and efficient county system of schools, is the most far-reaching problem that can engage in its solution, the thought and unified effort of the people of the whole county. We believe the successful solution of this problem constitutes the mud-sill of our fullest economic development and expansion, and the mud-sill of an intelligent, progressive, happy and efficient rural citizenship.

We have undertaken to get at first-hand all the essential facts involved in a thorough-going and reliable county-wide survey, to interpret and to discuss them in the light of common every-day experience, avoiding technicalities wherever practicable.

The scope of the survey has included visitation to every white school in the county, both rural and urban. In studying the quality of instruction being received by the white rural children, the work of every teacher, with but one exception, was observed, and a total of more than 150 recitations were carefully studied.

In the testing program, standardized tests were given to the children in every white rural school in the county, and also to the children in all the elementary grades in the Kinston and LaGrange schools. A total of 943 rural children were given tests, while a total of 1,161 in the Kinston and LaGrange schools were given tests, making a total of 2,104 children given separate tests, and a total of 6,398 different papers scored.

In studying the white rural school buildings of the county, every building was visited and scored by these experts, using standards of measurements recognized and employed by authorities throughout America.





Believing the educational problems to be solved in Lenoir County to be common to all the other counties of the State, and believing the method suggested for their solution equally applicable to every other county in the State, we have attempted to make this survey sufficiently comprehensive and intensive both in method and scope to be a helpful guide to county boards of education, county superintendents, rural school supervisors, high school principals and teachers, school committeemen and patrons throughout the State, who are engaging in the solution of these common problems.

In the absence of a complete survey of the colored schools of the county, it is not possible to determine the number and location of the schools that will be needed to accommodate the colored children. It is also impossible to determine the cost of the reorganized system of schools that is to be provided for the colored race. The county board of education has expressed its purpose of providing for the colored citizens of the county comfortable, well-built school buildings, adequate to accommodate their children.

The several colored school districts will be carefully studied, and in all probability will be regrouped with the idea of making better schools, and at the same time promote economy of administration. A reasonable amount of money for the building of the colored schools will be provided in the general plans adopted for developing the county-wide school system for both races. It will be possible to secure several thousand dollars from the Rosenwald Fund and from the colored people themselves for improving their schools. This will greatly reduce the cost to the county, and at the same time secure the new and better schools the colored people need.

THE SURVEY STAFF

The survey staff consisted of the following members: Miss Hattie S. Parrott, Assistant State Supervisor Rural Schools, in charge of testing program in both rural and urban schools, and also aiding in scoring the rural school buildings; Mr. W. F. Credle, Assistant State Director of Schoolhouse Planning, rendering an essential service in scoring the white rural school buildings of the county; Mr. John J. Blair, State Director of Schoolhouse Planning, who made the maps presented in this report; L. C. Brogden, State Supervisor Rural Schools, who made the other investigations and studies embodied in this report, and Mr. E. E. Sams, Superintendent of Public Instruction of Lenoir County, without whose constant, untiring, and efficient coöperation in every phase of the work the survey could hardly have been made.

For helpful criticism of the survey, the survey staff is indebted to State Superintendent A. T. Allen, Dr. M. R. Trabue, of our State University; J. E. Hilman, Director of Teacher-Training; J. H. Highsmith, Supervisor of High Schools, and N. C. Newbold, Director of Negro Education.

L. C. BROGDEN,

Director of the Survey.

PART ONE
The Present Educational Situation in Lenoir County
CHAPTER I
LENOIR COUNTY

1. ITS LOCATION AND PHYSICAL CHARACTERISTICS.

2. POPULATION, COMPOSITION AND DISTRIBUTION.

3. TOTAL TAXABLE WEALTH.

4. ROADS.

(1) Location and Physical Characteristics. In land area the county is about an average county, containing 390 square miles.

*“It lies in the southeast section of the tidewater region of the State and on the lower course of the Neuse.

“Cotton and tobacco are the great money crops. The soil is well adapted to the cultivation of corn and all other cereals; also Irish and sweet potatoes. All the fruits of the temperate regions can be successfully grown, and the cultivation, if made a specialty, would be attended with profit. There are no lands in the entire State of North Carolina better adapted to the cultivation of bright yellow tobacco than the lands of Lenoir County. Owing to the great prosperity of the county, land is in demand. There is a high order of intelligence among the farming population, and they are well abreast with the recent improvements in farming.

“The Atlantic and North Carolina (now the Norfolk and Southern) Railroad traverses the county, giving access to all the markets; and this facility has given an impetus to truck farming, for which soil and climate are well adapted, and all the early vegetables cultivated on the shores of navigable waters are sent to markets from Lenoir with equal facility and profit. Kinston, the capital, is situated on the Neuse River, and is also the southern terminus of a branch of the Atlantic Coast Line.”

(2) Total Population and its Increase. According to the fourteenth census, the total population of the county is 29,553, in 1910 it was 22,769, while in 1900 it was 18,639. The total population of the county increased 22.2 per cent from 1900 to 1910, but from 1910-1920 it increased 29.8 per cent. The population per square mile in the county in 1920 is 75.8 per cent, while the population per square mile for the entire State is only 52.5 per cent. In population per square mile the county is far above the average for the State. There are only fifteen counties in the State with a larger population per square mile than Lenoir.

(a) Rural Population and Its Increase. In 1900 the rural population of the county was 14,553; in 1910, 15,774; while in 1920 it was 19,784. The increase in the rural population of the county from 1900 to 1910 was only 8.5 per cent, while from 1910 to 1920 the increase rose to 25.4 per cent. The rural population per square mile is 50.7 per cent, while the rural population for the entire State is 42.4 per cent. In rural population per square mile the county ranks twenty-fifth.

*North Carolina and Its Resources, State Department of Agriculture.



(b) Distribution of Rural Population by Townships.
Name of Township192019101900Per Cent Increase, 1910-1920
Contentnea Neck Township2,1821,9701,51510.7
Falling Creek Township1,6661,2481,14833.5
Institute Township1,4161,1251,12325.8
Kinston Township, including Kinston, etc.11,6768,3605,55139.6
Moseley Hall Township, including LaGrange3,3272,7372,58521.6
Neuse Township1,17296783621
Sand Hill Township76162366422.2
Southwest Township561623681*
Trent Township1,9801,5121,25731
Vance Township1,8011,3741,06131
Woodington Township1,4781,0901,12335.6

* Decrease of 62 inhabitants.

From the above table it will be seen that the population in some of these strictly rural townships during the past decade has grown more rapidly than in others; that Woodington Township, with its 35.6 per cent increase since 1910, leads all the others, but with Falling Creek, with its 33.5 per cent increase, a close second. Southwest Township is the only township which has actually lost in population since the last census.

The facts indicating the growth in population in these respective townships should have careful consideration in a school building and school consolidation program.

(c) Town Population, Its Increase and distribution.
192019101900Increase in Per Cent, 1910-1920
Kinston City9,7716,9054,10641.5
LaGrange1,3901,00783338
Pink Hill1665854
Totals11,3277,9704,939

From the above table it will be seen that the town of Kinston increased its population from 1910 to 1920 41.5 per cent; that LaGrange increased its population in that period 38 per cent, and Pink Hill increased its population from 1910-1920 approximately 54 per cent. And this proportionate increase in the population of these respective towns during the past decade should be also taken in consideration in a county-wide program for school consolidation and school building.

(d) Racial Composition of Population.
Total PopulationNative WhiteNative White Foreign BornNative White Mixed ParentageNegro PopulationPer Cent Native WhitePer Cent White Foreign BornPer Cent Negro
192029,55516,384804013,06155.40.444.8
191022,75912,5833010,225550.144.9

From the foregoing table it will be seen: (a) that the native white population in 1920 constituted 55.4 per cent of the total, or a gain of four-tenths of one per cent since 1910; (b) that the white foreign-born constituted in 1920 four-tenths of one per cent of the total, or a gain since 1910 of three-tenths of one per cent; (c) that the negro population in 1920 constituted 44.8 per cent of total, or a relative loss of one-tenth of one per cent since 1910. It is quite clear that education in Lenoir County is but little affected by the foreign-born element in its population.

(3) Total Taxable Wealth and Increase in its Farm Value. The total taxable wealth of county for 1923-24 is approximately $29,250,000. In taxable wealth Lenoir County stands far ahead of the average county in the State, standing 28 from the top of the list. In 1920, 189,153 acres of land were in farms in the county, which was 75 per cent of its land areas. In 1900 the total value of all farm property in the county was $2,026,515, in 1910 it had risen to $4,156,271, and in 1920 had risen to $23,509,250, a gain of approximately 100 per cent from 1900 to 1910, but a gain from 1910 to 1920 of more than 500 per cent. In its total value of all farm property, Lenoir is surpassed by nine counties only in the entire State.

The average value of all property per farm in the county in 1920 was $7,435, while the average value of all property per farm for the State as a whole was only $4,634. In this average value of property per farm Lenoir County is surpassed by three counties only: Greene, Pitt, and Wayne.

(4) Roads. A few years ago Lenoir County voted a two million dollar bond issue for roads. It now has, or soon will have, approximately 70 miles of hard-surface roads. It is quite probable that the county has more miles in hard-surface roads for its size than any county in the entire State.





− WHITE RURAL AND URBAN SCHOOLS UNDER PRESENT PLAN

CHAPTER II
WHAT IS THE PRESENT PLAN FOR MEETING THE EDU-
CATIONAL NEEDS OF THE RURAL CHILDREN OF THE
COUNTY?

Outside the city of Kinston and LaGrange, which are independent school districts, the schools of the county are under the control of the county board of education, consisting of three members. The members of this board are nominated from the county at large at the county primary, and their nominations are ratified by the State Legislature.

This board is now undertaking to meet the educational needs of the white rural school children through the maintenance of 42 separate schools in 42 separate school districts, embracing an area of 390 square miles. (See map on preceding page.) Each of these 42 schools has its committee of three members appointed by the county board of education.

Of these 42 school districts twenty have voted a local tax, ranging in rate from fifteen to thirty cents on each one hundred dollars assessed valuation of property. The assessed valuation of property in these 42 school districts ranges from $163,915 to $772,345. The local tax voted is used to supplement the appropriations from the county school fund in lengthening the school term or increasing the salaries of the teachers.

The length of school term in these 42 school districts averages from 6 to 8 months. In three of the districts the school term last session was seven months, in five it was eight months, while in the remaining 34 it was six months only.

Of the 42 schools, fifteen are one-teacher schools, nineteen are two-teacher, six are three-teacher, one a four-teacher, and one is the Pink Hill consolidated school, employing ten teachers. The white one-teacher schools constitute 35.7 per cent of the total number, while the one- and two-teacher schools combined constitute 80 per cent of the total number. In five of these one-teacher schools one teacher alone is having to teach all the seven grades of the elementary school; in six one teacher is having to teach six grades; while in four schools only is one teacher having to teach as few as four grades of work. In these 42 schools four teachers only are giving their entire time to high school work, and three of these are in the Pink Hill consolidated school.

The total white revised rural school census 6-21, for 1921-22 was 3,289. Of this number 2,936 were enrolled during the past session, with an average daily attendance of 1,829. This means that 89 per cent of the revised census was enrolled, that only 55.6 per cent of this census was in daily attendance, and that only 63 per cent of even the enrollment were in school every day during the past session.





CHAPTER III
ARE THE PUPILS IN THE RURAL SCHOOLS HAVING THE
OPPORTUNITY TO STUDY ALL THE IMPORTANT SUB-
JECTS THEY SHOULD?

TABLE 1—Showing Per Cent of the Various Types of Rural Schools in County in Which Teacher's Daily Schedule Shows no Provision for the Teaching of the Subjects Indicated Below.
SubjectOne-Teacher, Per CentTwo-Teacher, Per CentThree-Teacher, Per CentMoss Hill, Four-TeacherPink Hill, Ten-Teacher Consolidated School
Writing6031.6
Spelling6.7
Physiology, sanitation, or hygiene2026
History13
Civics734250no provision
Agriculture6052.633⅓
Music100100100
Physical education10093.3100no provision
Cooking and sewing100100100no provision

(1) Writing.—Shall the pupils in all the rural elementary schools of the county have writing lessons every day? In 60 per cent of the one-teacher schools and in 31 per cent of the two-teacher schools there is no place for writing lessons on the daily schedule of the teacher.

(2) Spelling.—Should spelling be taught every day in the rural elementary schools of the county? In 6.7 per cent of the one-teacher schools, the teacher's daily schedule shows no place for the teaching of this subject.

(3) History.—Is not this subject of sufficient importance to be taught in every rural elementary school of the county? In 13 per cent of the one-teacher schools there appears no place on the teacher's daily program for the teaching of this subject.

(4) Physical Education and Hygiene.—Is it as important for our country children to become physically as well as mentally fit? In 20 per cent of the one-teacher and in 26 per cent of the two-teacher schools no provision on the teacher's daily program for the teaching of these subjects.

(5) Agriculture.—Since a majority of the children now growing up in the rural districts are going to become farmers, is it not a matter of common sense that these children should have ample opportunity to grasp at least the elemental facts about the occupation they are going to follow? In 60 per cent of the one-teacher schools, 52.6 per cent of the two-teacher schools, and in 33⅓ per cent of the three-teacher schools there appears no provision on the teachers’ daily schedule for the teaching of this subject.

(6) Music.—Shall our rural children have a fair chance at this subject? Shall not the country school equip boys and girls to make a life as well as to make a living; shall it not equip them to enjoy the “refined pleasures of life”; to get more joy out of, and add more joy to, country life? For the whole of country life is not taken up with the actual struggle of making a

living. There come hours of freedom from toil, and of diversion of some sort. Therefore, the country school cannot escape the responsibility of equipping these boys and girls to use these hours of relaxation to the greatest advantage to themselves, and to those about them. And what one thing enables them to get more real joy out of life during these hours of relaxation than the understanding and appreciation of good music, than the ability to sing well and to play well upon a favorite instrument? What offers more genuine pleasure to the country home on the long winter evenings when the family is gathered about the glowing fireside than the singing and the playing of the children upon their favorite instruments, the songs of the old masters as the evening hours wear away, and what adds more to the life and interest of the country Sunday school and the country church than good music?

And yet in only one of the 42 rural schools of the county is there any place on the teachers’ daily program for the teaching of music, and this is in the one consolidated school in the county.

(7) Civics.—In this age when we are stressing so much good citizenship, is it important that our rural pupils have an opportunity to study in a systematic way the simple facts underlying good citizenship and good government?

In 73 per cent of the one-teacher, 42 per cent of the two-teacher, and 50 per cent of the three-teacher schools there appears no place on the teachers’ daily schedule for the teaching of this subject.

(8) Domestic Arts.—Shall the girls in our rural schools, the majority of whom will become home-makers and home-keepers, have ample opportunity to equip themselves for the profession they are going to follow?

In not one rural school in the county is there any provision on the teachers’ daily program for the teaching of this important subject.

To Sum Up: It will be seen from the above table—(1) That in 60 per cent of the one-teacher and 31.6 per cent of the two-teacher schools there appears no place on the teachers’ daily program for the teaching of Writing; (2) that in 6.7 per cent of the one-teacher schools there appears no place on the teachers’ daily program for the teaching of Spelling; (3) in 20 per cent of the one-teacher schools and 26 per cent of the two-teacher schools no place for Physiology, Hygiene, or Sanitation; (4) in 13 per cent of the one-teacher schools no place for History; (5) in 73 per cent of the one-teacher, 42 per cent of the two-teacher, 50 per cent of the three-teacher, and in 100 per cent of the four-teacher schools (only one 4-teacher school) no place for Civics; (6) in 60 per cent of the one-teacher, 52.6 per cent of the two-teacher, and 33⅓ per cent of the three-teacher schools no place for Agriculture; (7) in only one of the 42 rural schools does there appear any provision for the teaching of Music; (8) in only one of the 42 rural schools does there seem to be on the program any provision even looking in the direction of what may strictly be termed physical training; (9) in not one single rural school does there appear any place for the teaching of Domestic Arts, Home-making, and Home-keeping.





CHAPTER IV
ARE THE PUPILS IN THE RURAL ELEMENTARY SCHOOLS
RECEIVING EACH DAY AS MUCH TIME AS THEY
SHOULD ON CERTAIN IMPORTANT SUBJECTS?

TABLE 2—Showing Average Number Minutes Given Daily to Reading.
Grade
1234567
One-teacher20.7141211.512.61013
Two-teacher4227251714.41614
Three-teacher3827.525252316.721
Four-teacher6040402020200
Pink Hill9055606060125135
LaGrange11535404040218227
Kinston6060303020318318

1 In the sixth grade in the Pink Hill school a 25-minute period is devoted to this subject on alternate days, while in the seventh grade a 35-minute period is devoted to this subject on alternate days.2 In the LaGrange school two 45-minute periods per week in the sixth grade are devoted to this subject, or an average of 18 minutes per day, while in the seventh grade in this school 135 minutes per week are given to this subject, or an average of 27 minutes per day.3 In the Kinston schools two 45-minute periods per week in the sixth and seventh grades are given to this subject, an average of 18 minutes per day.

(1) From the above table it will be seen that in the daily amount of time given to the subject of Reading, the one-teacher school is the laggard in the race; that while it devotes 20.7 minutes only to this subject each day, in the first grade, the Pink Hill consolidated school devotes on the average 90 minutes a day, or more than 400 per cent more time. If we compare the amount of time given to this subject in any one grade in the one-teacher school with the amount of time given to this subject in the same grade in the Pink Hill school the difference is quite noticeable.

(2) While the two, three, and four-teacher schools are devoting on the average from 31.3 to 47 minutes daily to this subject in each of the first three grades in an average school term of 132 days, the LaGrange school is devoting on the average 63 minutes a day, or nearly 100 per cent more time, and for a school term of 180 days.

(3) Owing to the over-crowded conditions in the Kinston school, and the necessity for a double shift, the time devoted to reading as indicated on the table may not represent it fairly.

TABLE 3—Showing Average Number Minutes Given Daily to Writing.
Grade
1234567
One-teacher12121212121212
Two-teacher11.5101014151515
Three-teacher*
Four-teacher101015151010†30
Pink Hill15351520†15†20†30
LaGrange20153015000
Kinston202015‡1215‡1620
* Writing was taught in the three-teacher schools, but owing to the fact that the time devoted to this subject was not definitely stated by each grade in each school, it was difficult to estimate accurately the time given to this subject. Therefore, it has been omitted in the table for the three-teacher schools.† This subject is not taught in the fifth, sixth, and seventh grades every day in the Pink Hill School, but alternates with some other subject.‡ In the Kinston schools, three 20-minute periods per week or an average of 12 minutes per day are given to this subject in the fourth grade, while in the sixth grade two 40-minute periods per week, an average of 16 minutes per day, are given to this subject.

(1) To the subject of Writing in each of the first three grades the one-teacher schools devote an average of 12 minutes daily, while the Pink Hill Consolidated School devotes an average of 22 minutes daily, or nearly 100 per cent more time.

(2) Again, while the one-, two-, three-, and four-teacher schools devote on the average of from 10.5 to 12 minutes a day to this subject in each of the first three grades, the Kinston and LaGrange schools devote on an average from 18 to 22 minutes daily.

TABLE 4—Showing Average Number Minutes Given Daily to Spelling.
Grade
1234567
One-teacher127.886.6778
Two-teacher17.513.814.49.6108.99.4
Three-teacher16141514121411
Four-teacher10101515151515
Pink Hill0401515152010
LaGrange202025251545*18
Kinston0204040152020

* In the LaGrange School two 45-minute periods per week, an average of 18 minutes per day, are given to this subject.

(1) To Spelling in each of the first three grades the one-teacher school devotes an average of 9.3 minutes, while the Pink Hill Consolidated School devotes an average of 18.3 minutes daily, or exactly 100 per cent more time.

(2) It will also be seen from this table that while the one-, two-, three-, and four-teacher schools devote an average of from 12 to 15.2 minutes daily to this subject in the first three grades, the LaGrange and Kinston schools devote an average from 20 to 22 minutes daily to this subject in these same grades.





TABLE 5—Showing Average Number Minutes Given Daily to Arithmetic.
Grade
1234567
One-teacher151412.412.6141515.7
Two-teacher21.818.32017.817.817.516
Three-teacher161920.8202123.726
Four-teacher1520203025250
Pink Hill50407030306030
LaGrange304560901004545
Kinston20153038304040

(1) From the above table it will be seen that in the time devoted to the teaching of Arithmetic the one-teacher school is again the laggard in the race; that while it devotes on the average only 15.7 minutes daily to this subject in the seventh grade, the Pink Hill consolidated school devotes on the average 30 minutes daily, or 100 per cent more time. And if we compare the amount of time given to this subject daily in any one grade in the one-teacher school with the amount of time given daily to this subject in the same grade in the Pink Hill school, the difference in time is quite noticeable.

On the average the two-, three-, and four-teacher schools are devoting from 18.3 to 20.3 minutes each day in each of the first three grades to this subject, while the LaGrange school is devoting an average of 45 minutes daily, or an average of more than 100 per cent more time. And yet here and there are unthinking parents who really think they think that a three- or four-teacher school can accomplish for their children all that is necessary; that in these schools the teachers should be required to teach ten and eleven grades of work. When they have a three- or four-teacher school they feel that they have practically a university in their midst.

TABLE 6—Showing Average Number Minutes Given Daily to Geography.
Grade
1234567
One-teacher001112121211.7
Two-teacher0018.6171614.414
Three-teacher001619171921.5
Four-teacher00102020200
Pink Hill00120203012530
LaGrange030035404030
Kinston002530204545

1 This subject not taught every day, but is taught on alternate days.

(1) While the one-teacher school devotes on the average only 11.7 minutes daily to Geography in the seventh grade, the Pink Hill consolidated school devotes on the average 30 minutes a day, or more than 150 per cent more time.

(2) While the two-, three-, and four-teacher schools devote to this subject in the fourth, fifth, and sixth grades an average of from 15.8 to 20 minutes daily, the LaGrange school devotes an average of 38.3 minutes daily, or nearly 100 per cent more time.

TABLE 7—Showing Average Number Minutes Given Daily to History.
Grade
1234567
One-teacher0001512.41212.8
Two-teacher00019181717
Three-teacher0000162017
Four-teacher0150020200
Pink Hill0012015130130125
LaGrange0000404540
Kinston00002013240

1 This subject is not taught every day in the Pink Hill school, but is taught on alternate days.2 In the Kinston schools four 40-minute periods per week, an average of 32 minutes per day, is given to this subject in the sixth grade.

(1) To the subject of History in the seventh grade, the one-teacher school is devoting an average of 12.8 minutes daily only, while the Kinston and LaGrange schools are devoting on the average 40 minutes a day, or more than 300 per cent more time, and for a school term 50 per cent longer.

(2) While the two-, three-, and four-teacher schools devote on an average from 17.5 to 20 minutes daily to this subject in the fifth and sixth grades, the LaGrange school is devoting on an average of 42.5 minutes daily, or practically 100 per cent more time, and for a school term 36 per cent longer.

TABLE 8—Showing Average Number Minutes Given Daily to Physiology, Sanitation, or Hygiene.
Grade
1234567
One-teacher0001010.49.912.5
Two-teacher00017151515
Three-teacher000201616.818
Four-teacher0002020200
Pink Hill001001301300
LaGrange00040000
Kinston050002150

1 In the Pink Hill school a 30-minute period per day on alternate days is given to Sanitation in fifth and sixth grades.2 In the Kinston schools three 25-minute periods per week, an average of 15 minutes per day, is given to Hygiene in the sixth grade.

From the above table it will be seen that the LaGrange school and the Kinston school are devoting time to this subject of Physiology or Hygiene in one grade only. The LaGrange school is teaching this subject in the fifth grade only. It is quite probable that these two schools are not giving all the time to this important subject they would like to give, or as much time as this important subject demands. Of course, it is impossible for the rural schools under their present organization to give all the time to this subject that ought to be given to it.





TABLE 9—Showing Average Number Minutes Given Daily to Agriculture.
Grade
1234567
One-teacher00001012.510
Two-teacher000017170
Three-teacher000018160
Four-teacher000020200
Pink Hill000000130
LaGrange00000400
Kinston0000000

1 This subject is not taught every day, but on alternate days.

When we consider the fact that Lenoir County is largely a rural county, and that the majority of the children are country children, it must appear self-evident from the above table that none of the schools of the county, whether urban or rural, is giving all the time that it should to this subject, whether we consider it from the standpoint of nature study in the primary grades or from the standpoint of agriculture in the upper grammar grades.

TABLE 10—Showing Average Number Minutes Given Daily to Civics.
Grade
1234567
One-teacher00000010
Two-teacher00000017
Three-teacher00000017
Four-teacher0000000
Pink Hill000000125
LaGrange00000045
Kinston0000000

1 This subject is not taught every day, but on alternate days.

(1) From the above table it will be seen that the Kinston school makes no provision for the teaching of Civics in any one of the elementary grades. This, however, may be due to the present over-crowded condition in the schools, and the necessity for running a double shift each day. This subject is too important to be omitted from the program of the elementary school.

(2) It will also appear quite evident from the table above that none of the schools of the county is giving to this subject the time its importance demands.

SUMMARY

(1) From the foregoing tables in this chapter it must seem self-evident that from the standpoint of the amount of time devoted each day to Reading, Writing, Spelling, Arithmetic, History, and Geography, the one-teacher schools of the county are the unmistakable laggards in the race.

(2) To Reading in the first three grades the Pink Hill consolidated school is devoting nearly 100 per cent more time each day than does the one-teacher school; to Writing and to Spelling nearly 100 per cent more time.

(3) To Arithmetic in the seventh grade the Pink Hill school is devoting daily nearly 100 per cent more time than does the one-teacher school: to Geography more than 150 per cent more time; to History nearly 300 per cent more time, and for a school term 33⅓ per cent longer.

(4) To Reading in each of the first three grades the LaGrange school is devoting daily 100 per cent more time than the two-, three-, and four-teacher schools; to Writing and to Arithmetic nearly 100 per cent more time.

(5) To Geography in the fourth, fifth, and sixth grades the LaGrange school is devoting daily nearly 100 per cent more time than do these two-, three-, and four-teacher schools; to History and to Arithmetic in these grades approximately 100 per cent more time, and for a school term 36 per cent longer.

We have omitted in this chapter the discussion of the relative amounts of time devoted by the various schools of the county to the teaching of Agriculture, Physiology or Hygiene, and Civics, not because these subjects are not essential to efficient citizenship, but rather because the time devoted to them in all the schools of the county is not enough to make a comparison of the relative amounts of time devoted to them especially significant. We have confined our comparisons largely to the relative amounts of time devoted to the three R's because these subjects constitute a large part of the bill of fare common to all the schools, big and little, in the county.

In the tables included in this chapter we have not included the subject of Music, because the teaching of this subject appears in the elementary school program of only three schools in the county: Kinston, LaGrange, and Pink Hill. We have not included Manual Training or Domestic Science because these subjects do not appear upon the elementary school program of a single school in the county.





CHAPTER V
ARE THE PUPILS IN THE RURAL SCHOOLS ATTENDING
SCHOOL AS REGULARLY AS THEY SHOULD?

TABLE 11—Showing—
Revised School Sensus, 6-21Total School EnrollmentAverage Daily AttendancePer Cent of Revised Census EnrolledPer Cent of Enrollment in Daily AttendancePer Cent of Revised Census in Daily Attendance
One-teacher644503307786147.67
Two-teacher1,6201,31580081.160.849.4
Three-teacher685596352875951.39
Four-teacher1391188584.97261.15
Pink Hill44040125691.163.858

From the above table it will be seen that the fifteen one-teacher schools enroll 78 per cent of their revised school census and keep in daily attendance only 47.67 per cent of this census. On these two points it will be seen that the one-teacher school ranks the lowest among the different types of schools in the county.

ARE THE PUPILS IN THE RURAL SCHOOLS OF THE COUNTY UP
TO THE STATE'S STANDARD IN WHITE RURAL SCHOOL ATTEND-
ANCE?

TABLE 12—Showing—
Revised School Census, 6-21Total School EnrollmentAverage Daily AttendancePer Cent of Revised Census EnrolledPer Cent of Enrollment in Daily AttendancePer Cent of Revised Census in Daily Attendance
County3,5282,9331,80083.161.3751
State468,761398,036290,57384.97362

From the above table it will be seen: (a) that while the 42 white rural schools of the county enroll 83.1 per cent of their total revised school census, the State's standard is 84.9; (b) that while the 42 rural schools of the county keep in daily attendance only 51 per cent of their revised census, the State's standard is 62 per cent; and (c) that while the rural schools of the county keep in daily attendance only 61.37 per cent of their actual enrollment, the State's standard is 73 per cent of its enrollment.

AVERAGE NUMBER OF DAYS ATTENDED BY EACH PUPIL IN THE
RURAL SCHOOLS, IN LAGRANGE, AND IN THE STATE FOR 1921-
1922

TABLE 13—Showing—
Average Length of School TermPer Cent of Enrollment in Daily AttendanceAverage Number Days Attended by Each Pupil
Lenoir County136 days61.3783.46
LaGrange180 days60.9139.4
State130.67395.3

From the above table it will be seen: (a) that the average number of days attended by each pupil in the rural schools during the school term was 83.46; (b) that the average number of days attended by each pupil in the LaGrange school was 129.4; and (c) that the average number days attended by each rural pupil in the State was 95.3.

TOTAL NUMBER OF DAYS ATTENDED BY EACH INDIVIDUAL PUPIL
IN THE RURAL SCHOOLS, AND BY EACH PUPIL IN THE LA-
GRANGE SCHOOL

TABLE 14—Showing—
Total Enrollment1 to 20 DaysPer Cent20 to 40 DaysPer Cent40 to 60 DaysPer Cent60 to 80 DaysPer Cent
Rural2,9092197.530110.335712.242014.4
LaGrange420153174152205
80 to 100 DaysPer Cent100 to 120 DaysPer Cent120 to 140 DaysPer Cent140 to 160 DaysPer Cent160 to 180 DaysPer Cent
Rural5822076926.41254.41465
LaGrange33813319439924959

From the above table a few striking comparisons will be observed. It will be seen: (a) that while three per cent only of the LaGrange school enrollment do not attend school beyond 20 days; 7.5 per cent of the rural school enrollment do not attend school beyond 20 days; (b) that while only four per cent of the LaGrange enrollment attends school from 20 to 40 days only, 10.3 per cent of the rural school enrollment attend school from 20 to 40 days only; (c) that while five per cent only of the total rural school enrollment attend from 140 to 160 days, 39 per cent of the LaGrange pupils attend from 140 to 160 days, and more striking still is the fact that while not a single pupil in the rural schools attended from 160 to 180 days, 249 pupils or 59 per cent of the LaGrange enrollment attended school from 160 to 180 days.





TABLES 15-19—Showing the Enrollments, the Number and Per Cent of the Pupils Attending School for Various Numbers of Days in the Different Types of Rural Schools for 1921-1922.
15—ONE-TEACHER SCHOOLS
Total Enrollment1 to 20 DaysPer Cent20 to 40 DaysPer Cent40 to 60 DaysPer Cent60 to 80 DaysPer Cent
50045960127715.47638
Total Enrollment80 to 100 DaysPer Cent100 to 120 DaysPer Cent120 to 140 DaysPer Cent140 to 160 DaysPer Cent
50010921.813326.6
16—TWO-TEACHER SCHOOLS
Total Enrollment1 to 20 DaysPer Cent20 to 40 DaysPer Cent40 to 60 DaysPer Cent60 to 80 DaysPer Cent
1,2281065.314611.813110.718114.8
Total Enrollment80 to 100 DaysPer Cent100 to 120 DaysPer Cent120 to 140 DaysPer Cent140 to 160 DaysPer Cent
1,22825120.436629231.8241.9
17—THREE-TEACHER SCHOOLS
Total Enrollment1 to 20 DaysPer Cent20 to 40 DaysPer Cent40 to 60 DaysPer Cent60 to 80 DaysPer Cent
575518.981146711.78615
Total Enrollment80 to 100 DaysPer Cent100 to 120 DaysPer Cent120 to 140 DaysPer Cent140 to 160 DaysPer Cent
5751212114124.5162.8122
18—FOUR-TEACHER SCHOOL (MOSS HILL)
Total Enrollment1 to 20 DaysPer Cent20 to 40 DaysPer Cent40 to 60 DaysPer Cent60 to 80 DaysPer Cent
12764.764.786.31612.6
Total Enrollment80 to 100 DaysPer Cent100 to 120 DaysPer Cent120 to 140 DaysPer Cent140 to 160 DaysPer Cent
1273124.438302218

19—PINK HILL CONSOLIDATED SCHOOL
Total Enrollment1 to 20 DaysPer Cent20 to 40 DaysPer Cent40 to 60 DaysPer Cent60 to 80 DaysPer Cent
391215.27256.455144712
Total Enrollment80 to 100 DaysPer Cent100 to 120 DaysPer Cent120 to 140 DaysPer Cent140 to 160 DaysPer Cent
391369.26215.851139424

The above tables do not make allowance for the 71 pupils of the county's enrollment that moved from one school to another school during the school term, but these pupils are considered in the totals in Table IV.

SUMMARY
I. School Census, Enrollment and Attendance in the One-Teacher Schools

(1) There is doubtless common agreement that one important test of the efficiency of a particular school or system of schools is the per cent of its revised school census the particular school or system of schools enrolls.

(2) Of their total revised school census (6-21), of 644 pupils, the fifteen one-teacher schools enroll 78 per cent only, thereby leaving 22 per cent of their actual school population untouched, and uninfluenced in their daily process of educating and training boys and girls for future citizenship in the county. In meeting this particular test of efficiency these one-teacher schools score three points below the two-teacher schools, nine points below the three-teacher schools, practically seven points below the four-teacher (Moss Hill) school, thirteen points below the Pink Hill consolidated school, and six points below the standard for the State. Therefore on these counts it must appear conclusive that the one-teacher schools of the county stand at the foot of the ladder.

(3) A more important test still of the efficiency of a school or system of schools is the per cent of its revised school census the school or system of schools keeps in daily attendance. For it is self-evident that it is not simply getting the names of all the children on the revised school census on the school register that is going to guarantee either to the community or to the county an educated and efficient citizenship. This will be accomplished only in proportion as the school or system of schools enrolls every child on the revised school census, keeps every one of them in daily attendance, and gives them instruction that is most worth while.

(4) Of their total revised school census, these fifteen one-teacher schools keep in daily attendance less than 48 per cent, nearly 2 per cent less than the two-teacher schools, nearly 3 per cent less than the three-teacher schools, nearly 13.5 per cent less than the Pink Hill school, and 14 per cent less than the State's standard for rural schools. Therefore it must again appear plain that in meeting these two important tests of efficiency, the per cent of its revised school census enrolled, and the per cent of this revised census in daily attendance, the one-teacher schools stand at the bottom of the ladder.

(5) But not only is the inefficiency of the one-teacher schools unmistakably seen in its failure to meet the two tests indicated above, it is still further seen in the average and total number of days attended by each pupil during the session.

(6) In total number of days attended by the pupils in the one-teacher school, as will be seen from table, approximately 20 per cent of the total enrollment,





or one out of five attended school during the school term from 1 to 40 days only, whereas in the four-teacher school only about one out of every ten pupils went to school for so short a period, while in the LaGrange school only one pupil out of 14 attended for so short a time.

Therefore in meeting tests of efficiency so far as determined by the per cent of school census enrolled, school census in daily attendance, and total number of days it keeps each pupil in school, the wayfaring parent cannot rank his one-teacher school very high in the scale of efficiency.

(7) During the school term of 1921-22 there was a movement of 72 white pupils from the school they first entered to some other school in the county. In this movement 4.4 per cent of the entire enrollment in the one-teacher schools moved, and 77.3 per cent of those moving from these one-teacher communities moved into communities with more than one teacher. In this movement the one-teacher communities lost nearly twice as many as they gained. This large per cent of those moving going into communities with more than one teacher may have been merely a happen so. It is more likely, however, that it was a result of deliberate choice on the part of the parents of these children. For it is a common observation that more and more intelligent land renters, as well as those seeking to buy land, are considering quite carefully the advantages offered by the school before either renting land or buying a home in the community. Hence a good school with enough well trained teachers to give the children not only first-class advantages in the common school branches, but high school advantages as well, is proving a valuable economic asset to the community.

II. Enrollment and Attendance in the County System of Rural Schools

(1) The acid tests of efficiency that apply to the individual schools apply with equal force to a system of schools.

(2) The 42 white rural schools of the county with their revised school census of 3,528 pupils enroll 83.1 per cent, and this is 1.8 per cent below the State's standard. And this means that approximately 17 children out of every one hundred are not even enrolled in the rural schools of the county.

(3) Of this total revised school census, these 42 schools are keeping in daily attendance only 51 per cent or 11 per cent below the standard for the State. This means that approximately only one pupil out of two who should be in school every day is actually in school every day, whether it be a six, seven, or eight months school.

(4) In the per cent of their total enrollment in daily attendance, the rural schools of the county score only 61.37 per cent, 11.63 per cent below the State's standard for rural schools, and 19.5 per cent below the score made by the LaGrange school.

(5) In the average number of days attended by each pupil in the Lenoir County system, the average number of days for each pupil is only 83.46, or 11.9 less than the average number of days attended by each pupil in the rural schools of the State, and 46 days less than the average number of days for each pupil in the LaGrange school.

(6) In the total number of days attended by the pupils in the rural schools of the county, as will be seen from Table XIV, approximately 17.8 per cent of their total enrollment attend school from 1 to 40 days only, while in the LaGrange school only 7 per cent of the enrollment attend school during the session for so short a time.

(7) While not a single pupil in the rural schools of the county attends school beyond 160 days, 59 per cent of the entire enrollment of the LaGrange school attends school from 160 to 180 days. Of course it may be said on behalf of the rural schools of the county that since none of them run for more than 160

days, it would therefore be impossible for the county children to attend school beyond 160 days. But this fact simply serves to emphasize still more clearly the inequality of educational opportunity offered children living in different sections of the same county.

(8) But it is quite probable that farmers too often mnimize their ability to send their children to school for an eight months term. The facts are, however, that when they have a good school and are fortunate enough to secure good teachers they will and do send their children to school for an eight months term. The Contentnea school is a clear illustration of this point. This is a two-teacher school right out in the open country, the children attending this school are the children of land renters and land owners. This school this year has two good teachers. They are interested in their work, are interested in the children and in the community. The school runs eight months or 160 days. The records show that 40 per cent of the children attend school from 140 to 160 days. A larger per cent of the children attended this school from 140 to 160 days than attended from 100 to 120 days in the other two-teacher schools of the county that run for the six months term only.

(9) Notwithstanding the commendable fact that the average length of rural school term of the county is approximately six days only less than the average for the State, yet the facts remain that when we apply to the forty-two schools in the county system the acid tests of efficiency in the per cent of school census enrolled, in the per cent of school census kept in daily attendance, in per cent of school enrollment in daily attendance, in the average number of days each pupil is being kept in school during the session, we find them failing at nearly every one of these points to measure up to the standard of the State as a whole, or to the level of the LaGrange school.

The serious consequences of irregular attendance do not end with the disorganization of classroom work, in handicapping the regular pupils in their progress through the grades, in wasting years of school life of those who attend irregularly, or even in the economic waste of having the teacher teach year after year the same thing to the same pupils. When we consider the fact that seventeen children out of every one hundred in the revised school census are not even enrolled during the school term; that about only one out of every two of this census attends school regularly, and that one out of every five enrolled does not go to school beyond forty days during the term—when we consider these facts, then it is self-evident that this enrollment and attendance of pupils in the rural schools is a matter of concern not only to the child, the teacher, and the welfare officer, but should be a matter of serious concern to the community and the county itself. For it is doubtless true that the future adult illiterates in the county will be found among these seventeen out of each one hundred on the revised school census who are not being enrolled: and in this group made up of one out of each five enrolled who are not going to school beyond forty days during the term. And it is quite natural to believe that the majority of those of the coming generation who will most stoutly oppose all progressive measures in whatever form they may come, whether local or county-wide, will be found among this seventeen per cent not being enrolled, this one out of five now not going to school beyond forty days during the term, and the forty-nine per cent that attend school irregularly.

Causes of Low Enrollment and Low Percentage of Attendance. Aside from sickness and the physical disability of the children, the question naturally arises: What is the relation between low enrollment and poor attendance and a teaching force 33 per cent of whom are without teaching experience, with only one out of ten a college graduate, with one out of every four below high school graduation, with only one per cent teaching in the same school for more than the third year, with daily classes per teacher ranging from 32





in the one-teacher schools to 15 in the Pink Hill school, with an average number of minutes for each class ranging from 11.3 minutes in the one-teacher schools to 22 minutes in the Pink Hill school, and with an average annual salary ranging from $398.76 in the one-teacher schools to $747.92 in the Pink Hill school.

To the extent to which the particular items in the above question are responsible for the percentage of school census enrolled, and kept in daily attendance, it must seem self-evident that the only permanent relief can come through a progressive, constructive, county-wide coöperative policy, through making the county the absolute unit in educational endeavor.

CHAPTER VI
TRAINING, EXPERIENCE AND ANNUAL SALARY OF
RURAL TEACHERS AND THE TEACHERS OF KINSTON
AND LAGRANGE SCHOOLS, 1921-1922
I. ARE THE PUPILS IN THE RURAL SCHOOLS BEING TAUGHT BY
WELL EDUCATED AND WELL TRAINED TEACHERS?

TABLE 20—Showing—
Type of SchoolCollege GraduateThree Years in CollegeTwo Years in CollegeOne Year in CollegeGraduate of High School OnlyCompleting 10th Grade OnlyCompleting 9th Grade OnlyCompleting 8th Grade OnlyCompleting 7th Grade OnlyTotal
One-teacher00135311115
Two-teacher3021014331238
Three-teacher10445400018
Moss Hill1000010204
Pink Hill41122000010
Totals91819261144385

(1) From the above table it will be seen: (a) that of the fifteen teachers employed in the one-teacher schools of the county, not one is a college graduate; (b) that only four of the number have attended college, while six of the number, or 40 per cent, have completed a course no higher than the tenth grade.

(2) In the nineteen two-teacher schools there are three college graduates only of the 38 teachers; fourteen, or 37 per cent, are graduates of high school only, while approximately 24 per cent have completed a course not beyond the tenth grade.

(3) In the six three-teacher schools only one of the eighteen teachers is a college graduate, while 33⅓ per cent have not completed a course beyond the tenth grade.

(4) In the four-teacher school (Moss Hill) only one of the teachers is a college graduate, while three of them, or 75 per cent, have not completed a course beyond the tenth grade.

(5) Not until we reach the Pink Hill consolidated school with its ten teachers do we observe a marked change in the academic and professional training of the teachers. In the Pink Hill school 80 per cent of the teachers are either college graduates or have attended college, while not one of the ten fails high school graduation.





II. ARE THE TEACHERS IN THE RURAL SCHOOLS AS WELL EDU-
CATED AND WELL TRAINED AS THE TEACHERS IN KINSTON OR
IN LAGRANGE?

TABLE 21—Showing—
Type of SchoolCollege GraduateThree Years in CollegeTwo Years in CollegeOne Year in CollegeGraduate of High School OnlyCompleting 10th Grade OnlyCompleting 9th Grade OnlyCompleting 8th Grade OnlyCompleting 7th Grade OnlyTotal
Rural91819261144385
Kinston22022100000054
LaGrange73111000013

(1) From the above table it will be seen (a) that only 9 out of the 85 white rural teachers, or less than 10.6 per cent, are college graduates; (b) that 22 out of the 54 Kinston teachers, or about 40.7 per cent, are college graduates, and that in the LaGrange school 53.8 per cent are college graduates.

(2) While the academic training of 25.9 per cent of all the rural teachers, about one out of every four is below high school graduation the academic training of all the 54 Kinston teachers is above high school graduation, and that in the LaGrange school the academic training of one teacher only does not extend beyond high school graduation.

But the question may naturally arise as to the reason for this marked difference in the education and training of those who teach in the rural schools of the county and those who teach the children in Kinston and LaGrange. The answer to this question does not lie in the unwillingness of the county board of education, the county superintendent, and the school committeemen to provide for the country children teachers equally as well trained as the teachers in Kinston and LaGrange. The reason lies rather in the very nature of the situation which they have to face.

III. ARE THE PUPILS IN THE RURAL SCHOOLS BEING TAUGHT
BY EXPERIENCED TEACHERS?

TABLE 22—Showing—
Years of TeachingNumberPer Cent
None2833
One1418.5
Two1315.3
Three1315.3
Four or more1720
Total85

(1) From the above table it is seen (a) that 28 of the 85 rural teachers, or 33 per cent, were without teaching experience when they began the sessions work; (b) that 13 or 15.3 per cent had had two years of experience only, while 55, or approximately 65 per cent, of all the rural teachers of the county had taught for less than three years when they began the session's work.

When we recall the amount of academic and professional training possessed by the rural teachers of the county and add to this the lack of teaching experience on the part of such a large per cent, the problem of guaranteeing efficient instruction to all the rural children of the county becomes a serious one.

IV. ARE THE TEACHERS IN THE RURAL SCHOOLS OF THE COUNTY
AS EXPERIENCED AS THOSE TEACHING IN THE KINSTON AND
LAGRANGE SCHOOLS?

TABLE 23—Showing—
Type of SchoolNumber Without Teaching ExperiencePer CentNumber With One Year's Experience OnlyPer CentNumber With Two Years’ Experience OnlyPer CentNumber With Three Years’ Experience OnlyPer CentNumber With More than Three Years’ ExperiencePer CentTotal
Rural28331416.51315.31315.3172085
Kinston58.871247610.5356157
LaGrange32317.1000096913

(1) From the above table it will be seen that while 33 per cent of all rural teachers were without teaching experience at the beginning of the session, only 8.8 per cent of the Kinston teachers were without teaching experience.

(2) While only 20 per cent of the rural teachers had taught for more than three years, 61 per cent of the Kinston teachers and 69 per cent of the LaGrange teachers had taught for over three years.

(3) From the evidence here presented two facts stand out: (a) that in the rural schools of the county the percentage of inexperienced far exceed the percentage of inexperienced teachers either in LaGrange or Kinston; and (b) that the percentage of teachers in the rural schools with more than three years of teaching experience falls far below the percentage of the teachers in Kinston and LaGrange who have taught for more than three years.

It is quite possible that several of the splendid teachers now in the Kinston and LaGrange school did their practice teaching out in these rural schools, and as soon as they had time to prove their real worth as teachers Kinston and LaGrange heard about it and invited them to come up. They accept. No one can blame them.

V. ARE THE PUPILS IN THE RURAL SCHOOLS BEING TAUGHT BY
THE SAME TEACHERS YEAR AFTER YEAR?

TABLE 24—Showing—
Number of Consecutive Years in Same SchoolNumber of TeachersPer Cent
Second year1722⅔
Third year1621⅓
For more than third year11⅓

(1) From the above table it will be seen (a) that of the 75 white rural teachers outside the Pink Hill consolidated school, which has but recently been formed, only 17, or 22⅔ per cent were teaching in the same school for the





second consecutive year; (b) that only 16, or 21⅓ per cent were teaching in the same school for the third consecutive year; and (c) that only one teacher out of the 75, or 1⅓ per cent, was teaching in the same school for more than the third year.

The necessity for keeping a good and growing teacher in the same school for at least several consecutive years is unquestioned.

Until the county board of education is in a position to provide for the country child the same teacher for several sessions in succession, the teacher, strong in personality, strong in the power to teach, strong in the spirit of community service, who is growing from year to year, both as a teacher of the children and worker in the community, it will be unable to build up in the county an efficient system of rural schools or render a very constructive service in the building up in the county a rural citizenship that is progressive, efficient and happy.

VI. WHAT IS THE AVERAGE ANNUAL SALARY PAID THE RURAL
TEACHERS AND THE TEACHERS IN THE ELEMENTARY DE-
PARTMENT OF THE KINSTON AND LAGRANGE SCHOOLS?

TABLE 25—Showing—
Average in Local Tax DistrictsAverage in Non-local Tax DistrictsTotal AverageLength of School Term
One-teacher$ 448.33$ 349.19$ 398.76118 days
Two-teacher525.09403.50464.29127 days
Three-teacher1515.56457.00486.28132 days
Four-teacher1500.09500.09140 days
Pink Hill737.92737.92160 days
LaGrange859.44859.44180 days
Kinston1,184.141,184.14180 days

1 In one of the three-teacher schools the third teacher was not employed for full term. Therefore the average annual salary would have been some larger than indicated in the table. In the four-teacher school one of the teachers was employed for four months only. Therefore the average annual salary would have been larger than that indicated in the table.

(1) From the above table it is seen (a) that the average annual salary of all white teachers in the fifteen one-teacher schools, including both local and non-local tax districts is only $398.76 for a school term of approximately 120 days, or an average monthly salary the year around of only $33.23. For these teachers do not cease to live at the end of a school term of 120 days; they are doing their level best to live for 365 days in the year. It would be interesting to know how they do it. It is rather difficult to see how a teacher can board and clothe herself, buy the needed professional books, attend a summer school to prepare herself for better work, take a vacation of eight or ten days, pay her church dues, all out of a monthly salary of $33.23. Is it surprising that under these circumstances these teachers cease to grow as teachers and soon become afflicted with the hardening of the professional arteries? It may be that there is an inseparable relation between this average annual salary of $398.76 and the fact that there is not a college graduate among the fifteen teachers in the one-teacher schools, between this salary and the fact that only four of these fifteen teachers have ever attended college, and between this salary and the further fact that 40 per cent of the teachers in these one-teacher schools have never finished a course beyond the tenth grade.

(2) In the two teacher schools in both local and non-local tax districts the average annual salary is only $464.29 for a school term of 127 days, or a monthly salary the year round of $38.69.

(3) From the foregoing table it can be seen that the average annual salary of all teachers in the one-, two-, three- and four-teacher schools is $462.35 or a monthly salary the year round of $38.69, or only five dollars more per month the year round than the salary received by the teachers in the one-teacher schools.

(4) In the Pink Hill consolidated school the average annual salary is $737.92 for a school term of 160 days, against an average salary of $398.76 for the teachers in the one-teacher schools, and against an average salary of $462.35 for all the rural teachers outside of Pink Hill. And this salary of $737.92 paid to the Pink Hill teachers doubtless accounts in large measure for the fact that while less than 7 per cent of all rural teachers outside of Pink Hill are college graduates, in the Pink Hill school about 40 per cent are college graduates; and that while approximately 30 per cent, or nearly one out of every three teachers in all the rural schools have not completed work above the tenth grade, there is not a single teacher in the Pink Hill school whose scholarship falls below high school graduation.

(5) From the foregoing table it will also be seen that the average annual salary of the teacher in the LaGrange school is $859.44 for a school term of 180 days, and that the average annual salary of the teachers in the elementary department of the Kinston school, including that of the elementary principals is $1,184.14 for a school term of 180 days. And this average annual salary of $859.44 in the LaGrange school and the average annual salary of $1,184.44 in the Kinston school against a total average annual salary for all rural schools, including Pink Hill, of $517.47 has doubtless a great deal to do in determining the fact that while only about 10 per cent of all the rural teachers in the county are college graduates, 54 per cent in the LaGrange school, and 46.7 per cent of all the teachers in the Kinston school are college graduates; that while 26 per cent of all the rural teachers about one out of every four is below high school graduation, not a teacher in either the LaGrange or Kinston school is below high school graduation; that while 33 per cent of all rural teachers are without experience, only 23 per cent in the LaGrange school, and only 8.8 per cent in the Kinston school are without experience; and that while only 20 per cent of the rural teachers had taught for more than three years, 61 per cent of the Kinston teachers and 69 per cent of the LaGrange teachers had taught for more than three years.

Since it is quite evident from the facts presented here that there is this close relation between the education, training and teaching experience, and the amount of annual salary they receive, the conclusion seems unavoidable that the one big problem standing between the country children and efficient instruction for them is the serious problem of lengthening the school term, investing more money in the teacher and securing more efficient service as a result. But the serious question that must tax sorely the mind of the progressive school committee with their small taxable wealth, and their comparatively small school fund is the question of providing, under the present district plan, sufficient money to invest in the service of a capable and well trained teacher, even if they levy a local tax up to the limit of the law.





CHAPTER VII
ARE THE PUPILS IN THE RURAL SCHOOLS READING,
SPELLING AND WORKING ARITHMETIC AS WELL AS
THEY SHOULD?
I. FINDING THE ACHIEVEMENTS OF THE PUPILS IN THESE
SUBJECTS

1. IMPORTANCE OF READING, SPELLING AND ARITHMETIC IN THE ELEMENTARY GRADES.

2. PURPOSE OF EDUCATIONAL TESTS.

3. SCOPE OF THE SURVEY.

4. THE SEVEN-GRADE ELEMENTARY COURSE.

5. AGE-GRADE DISTRIBUTION.

1. Importance of Reading, Spelling and Arithmetic in the Elementary Grades. A large part of the elementary school work is given to the development of the ability to read, spell and work arithmetic. This procedure is justified by the fact that these subjects are fundamental in elementary education. They are such important tools in civilized life that the success or failure of a boy or girl is to a great extent determined by his or her proficiency in these basic studies. And again, a pupil who is not well grounded in these fundamental subjects cannot make progress in the work of the higher grades. Especially is this true of the subject of reading as the progress of the pupil in all subjects depends upon his ability to read understandingly. The work of the elementary school is not a success unless it is so organized and the course of study so administered as to result in the development of the ability to read, spell and worth arithmetic and so enable the child through this achievement to develop his various powers and abilities to the extent that he may become a growing useful citizen.

(a) The results obtained in the teaching of reading is a good index to the work of the primary grades, and the degree of success attained may be approximated by the standards reached. If the pupils are taught to read with ease and fluency and understand what they read, the work of the grades is usually rated very high, while on the other hand if the pupils read poorly the work as a whole is considered a failure for the reason that reading is the most important subject taught in the primary grades. The first grades spend practically the whole of the school day, and the other primary grades spend a large per cent of the time in learning to read. This fact emphasizes the relative importance of reading when compared with other subjects taught in these grades. If the teaching of reading is a failure in the first three grades, it always makes advanced instruction very difficult.

(b) The ability to read and understand simple prose of the type found in school readers and in the text-books on informational studies such as history and geography, becomes increasingly important in the grammar grades. The pupil in these grades must have the ability to grasp quickly the thought in a paragraph, a chapter, or a book as this is one of the biggest contributing

factors to success and determines to a large extent the progress and development of the individual among his fellow men and has a great deal to do with his happiness for a lifetime. Without this essential equipment to get on in the world he is handicapped in making progress in any phase of life.

*“No single occupation rests so heavily upon the public schools as that of teaching the young people of the State to read the English language, the language of American politics and government, the language of American commerce and industry, the language of American literature and of American social ideals. No achievement in other fields will compensate for failure here, and no mere knowledge of the simple words and sentences of the primary school readers will suffice. Young people should master the words and the language structure involved in English sentences and paragraphs which are necessary to mature thought.”

The chief purpose then in the teaching of reading in the public schools is to train pupils to interpret the printed page, to train in thought-getting from books, magazines and papers.

(c) Effective communication is forever hampered unless the pupil can spell accurately ordinary words commonly used, which are at the same time the foundation words of the English language.

(d) Daily experiences of the child outside the classroom and ordinary business transactions demand that he be able at least to add, subtract, multiply and divide with speed and accuracy, and to reason out simple problems.

2. Purpose of Educational Tests. Little satisfaction, however, can be gained from the fact that pupils can read, spell and work arithmetic as the most important questions concerned with the whole of elementary education are, how well can pupils read, spell and work arithmetic, and whether or not they accomplish as much as they should in these subjects. In order to answer these questions accurately and definitely it is necessary to find out what each individual pupil has achieved in these subjects and to compare this achievement with acceptable grade standards. Educational tests are recognized as the best means for measuring pupil achievement, and they also furnish standards which should be attained by the average pupil in good schools. This report is an attempt to state the method of procedure in the use of educational tests to find out how well the boys and girls of Lenoir County read, spell and work arithmetic, and to present facts necessary to show whether or not they are accomplishing what they should in these important school subjects.

3. Scope of the Survey. The tests used were selected from among those which have been most carefully prepared and most widely used. They were given under uniform conditions and the scoring and tabulating all done by the examiner in charge or under the close personal direction of the one in charge in order to insure absolute fairness and accuracy. A battery of tests was given in all of the grades from the fourth through the seventh in the forty-two rural schools of the county and in the LaGrange and Kinston schools. In this way, giving these tests in all types of schools, the data secured are as complete and as inclusive as it is possible to secure in a testing program of this kind. Every pupil in attendance in these grades in the forty-two rural schools and in the LaGrange and Kinston schools was examined with four or more tests during the time between February 24th and April 7th, all (except a few) being tested during the four weeks of March. This was very near the

* M. E. Haggerty. Educational Achievement. New York School Survey—1922.



close of the year's work for the majority of the rural schools and about six or seven weeks before the close of the LaGrange and Kinston schools. In addition to the tests in reading, spelling and arithmetic given in grades four to seven, the pupils in grades six and seven in all types of schools were given the Monroe Standardized Reasoning Test in Arthmetic. The pupils in grades one to three, inclusive, in the town and city schools and in nine rural schools of different types were given the Haggerty Reading Examination, Sigma I. The National Intelligence Test, Scale A, Form I, was given in grades four to seven throughout the county and in the LaGrange and Kinston schools. All of the tests given are group tests and may be administered to a number of pupils at one time. About two and one-half hours of the pupil's time was taken up with the tests in each grade, except in the primary grades, where thirty minutes in all were taken.

TABLE 26—Showing Program of Tests.
SubjectName of Test UsedIn Grades—Number Pupils Tested in—
Rural SchoolsLaGrangeKinstonTotal
ReadingThorndike-McCall Reading Scale, Form 54-76651464761,287
Haggerty Reading Examination, Sigma 11-3278114425817
SpellingSixty words selected from the Buckingham Extension of the Ayres Spelling Scale (see list)4-76651464761,287
ArithmeticWoody Arithmetic Scale, Series B4-76651464761,287
Monroe's Standardized Reasoning Tests in Arithmetic—Test II, Form 16-724870115433
General abilityNational Intelligence Test, Scale A—Form 14-76651464761,287

The above table shows that in all six different tests or scales were used, covering grades one to seven; that 2,104 pupils completed the full testing program, and that 6,398 separate test papers were scored and the results tabulated. Over fifty more pupils took one or more of the tests, but because of incomplete data or certain irregularities their test papers, numbering over one hundred, were not included in this report.

The complete results of the tests are reported here. It has been the usual custom in conducting and reporting results of surveys to give a partial report only, or to select a few typical schools or representative grades in certain types of schools and report the results from the use of tests in these only. This report includes all pupils in attendance in grades four to seven in all the rural schools of the county, in LaGrange and Kinston schools and the pupils of the primary grades in LaGrange and Kinston and nine rural schools of different types.

TABLE 27—Showing the Number of One-teacher, Two-teacher, Three-teacher, More than Three-teacher, Town and City Schools in which the Thorndike-McCall Reading, the Woody Arithmetic and Spelling Tests were Given.
Type of SchoolNumber of SchoolsNumber Pupils in Grades
IVVVIVIITotal
One-teacher152346201099
Two-teacher19119824948298
Three-teacher765404825178
More than three-teacher12319192990
Town (LaGrange)142343931146
City (Kinston)1115147114100476
Totals443873682892431,287

While the several sections of this chapter dealing with the results of tests in the different subjects are brief and one may gain a clearer understanding of actual conditions which prevail by a careful reading of the whole section, yet for the convenience of the reader a summarizing statement may be found at the close of each section, and a general summary or conclusion at the close of the chapter. In each statement care has been taken to give due credit for the work as actually measured by the standardized tests, and there has been no attempt to discredit schools because of lack of opportunity, but a statement of actual conditions is presented with a view to promoting a plan whereby the weak points in the organization and classroom work may be strengthened through remedial measures. In all study most of us need to know at times how far along we have gone in the subject studied, and the same principle applies in planning to give pupils the educational opportunity which is the right of every child. Therefore, the several sections of this chapter present the achievement of the pupils in reading, spelling and arithmetic, and furnish standards of achievement which should be reached by the several grades in which the tests were given.

The results of the National Intelligence Test which is a fair measure of general ability are given in Chapter VIII. This test was used to obtain information supplementary to the facts derived from the achievement tests.

4. The Seven-grade Elementary Course. The organization of the elementary school course in all schools tested in Lenoir County, in LaGrange and Kinston, is on the seven-grade plan. That is, these schools attempt to cover the elementary course in seven school years.

By a study of Table 30 it will be seen that the pupils in most of the rural schools are over-age for these grades, yet the plan of organization is such that these schools attempt to do in seven years what most schools attempt to do in eight. The rural schools and the LaGrange school group the pupils in seven-year grades, and in the Kinston school they are classified into fourteen half-year grade groups.

An eight-year elementary course is standard for the greater number of schools throughout the country, particularly in the north and west, where the scores given as “Standard Scores” have been obtained. However, with a practical illustration of a very usable and adjustable scheme, a fair comparison can be made of results from tests given in the seven-grade elementary schools and the standard scores obtained from the use of tests in the eight-grade schools.





In the report of the survey of the public schools of Virginia, Dr. M. E. Haggerty presents a plan for making the necessary adjustment of grade scores from the seven-grade elementary schools for a comparison with the scores made in the eight-grade systems. With Dr. Haggerty's permission the scheme is adapted to our use in reporting the results of the educational tests given in the Lenoir County schools and in comparisons made with these scores and the scores from the eight-grade elementary school systems.

The table below shows the adjustment to be made before interpreting the test scores. It will be seen that the seven-grade systems attempting to complete the same course as the eight-grade systems should be regarded as an organization of the elementary school into grades, each of which is equal to one and one-seventh grades, or more, in the eight-grade systems.

TABLE 28—Showing the Relation of Grades in the Lenoir County System to Those in the Standard System.
Grades of the seven-grade system1234567
Beginning of the elementary schoolEnd of the elementary school
Grades of the eight-grade system12345678

From the above table it may be understood that a first grade Lenoir County score should not only equal a first grade score in the eight-year system, but it should equal one and one-seventh grades. Again, a seventh-grade score in the Lenoir County schools should not only just equal a seventh-grade score in the eight-year system, but should equal an eighth-grade score as both grades—the seventh in the seven-year system and the eighth in the eight-year system—are considered the last year of the elementary course, and are considered the same in the respective systems.

The relationship between the scores from the grades of the seven-year system and the scores from the grades of an eight-year system, both covering the same course of study should be understood. The following table of equivalents will be helpful in determining the approximate relationship:

TABLE 29.
Seven-grade SystemEight-grade System
1 gradeequals1 1/7 grades
2 gradesequal2 2/7 grades
3 gradesequal3 3/7 grades
4 gradesequal4 4/7 grades
5 gradesequal5 5/7 grades
6 gradesequal6 6/7 grades
7 gradesequal8 grades

In the tables showing the results from the various tests the standard grades and grade scores for grades from one to eight are given showing the comparison with the median or average scores from the grades in the seven-grade system.

5. Age-grade Distribution. One other important fact to be kept in mind in comparing the results of the tests from the various types of schools, particularly in comparing the rural schools with the town and city schools, is the great difference in the ages of the pupils, the rural pupils being one or more years older than the pupils of the same grades in the city schools as the following table shows:

TABLE 30—Showing the Median Ages of Pupils in Grades Four to Seven in the Different Types of Schools and the Approximate Normal Age for Each Grade.
SchoolsGrades
IVVVIVII
Median Ages
One-teacher11.513.11414.1
Two-teacher12131414.4
Three-teacher11.41313.514.4
More than three-teacher10.2121314
LaGrange (town)10.312.113.414.5
Kinston (city)10.311.21213.7
All rural schools of the county11.513.313.714.4
Approximate normal age for grade at the time of year tests were given10.311.412.513.5

II. ARE THE PUPILS IN RURAL SCHOOLS READING AS WELL
AS THEY SHOULD?
I. PRIMARY GRADES

a. HOW WELL ARE THE PUPILS READING?

b. PRESENT ACHIEVEMENT COMPARED WITH STANDARDS IN READING.

c. SUMMARIZING STATEMENT.

a. How Well Are the Pupils Reading? To determine definitely and accurately the standard reached by each grade in the different types of schools in the county a standardized test in primary reading was used. This test, the Haggarty Reading Examination—Sigma I, is devised to discover the reading ability of pupils in grades one, two and three, and at the same time it furnishes definite standards in reading which should be accomplished by each grade. This reading examination, Sigma I, is composed of two tests, both of which may be completed in a thirty-minute period. Test 1 is a sentence and paragraph reading test. Accompanying the sentences and paragraphs are pictures. In each case there is direction for the pupils to make some mark upon the picture. This is the only response required of the pupil. Whether or not the pupil is able to read the sentences is measured by the kind of marks which he makes on the picture. He is not required to do any writing. The items of the test—twenty-five in number—are arranged in order of difficulty, the easiest being placed first and the succeeding ones being more difficult. In the construction of the test, careful attention was given to selecting only those words which were found in the most widely used primers and first-grade readers. Presumably an intelligent child who had had proper instruction in primary reading should be able to make a score on the easier parts of the test. As he proceeds through the tests, however, the items become more





difficult, and towards the end only good fourth-grade children will be able to read and respond properly to the directions. The test is given principally as a “power” test, not as a speed test—twenty minutes in time being allowed, which is more than most first and second, or even third-grade children will be able to use. This is a group test and may be administered to a number of pupils at the same time.

The test is preceded by a fore-exercise which is given as a lesson in which the pupils are instructed exactly how to perform the various things called for later in the test. Adequate attention is given to this fore-exercise, so that presumably every child of normal intelligence should be able to follow the directions in the test proper. This test with its fore-exercise occupies seven pages of an eight-page booklet.

Page eight of this booklet contains Test 2, which also is a sentence-reading test. This test consists of twenty interrogative sentences arranged in order of difficulty. It is preceded by a fore-exercise which, as in the case of Test 1, is taught to the pupils before the test proper is given. The only response called for on the part of the child is to make a line under one of two words, “Yes” or “No,” whichever may be the correct answer to the question asked. The time allowed for this test is two minutes.

The Haggerty Reading Examination, Sigma I, has been used extensively for the measurement of reading ability in the primary grades, and has been found to be an excellent measure of reading achievement in these grades. An individual pupil or grade whose work measures up to the standard scores given by this test should be rated as satisfactory. If, in measuring, the scores show that the work falls below the standard the cause of the weakness should be discovered and, if possible, remedied.

In beginning the program of testing in the rural schools of Lenoir County the Thorndike-McCall Reading Scale, Form 5, was given to the third-grade pupils in a number of schools when it was discovered that the pupils classified as third grade were making zero scores on this test. It was then decided to use a primary reading test in the first three grades in order to estimate fairly the reading achievement of the pupils in these grades.

The Haggerty Reading Examination, Sigma I, the test selected, was not given to all pupils in the primary grades of the rural schools. Typical schools were selected and the test given to all the pupils of grades one, two, and three in these schools. The following schools were selected: one-teacher schools: Lynwood, Pine Forest, and Piney Grove; two-teacher schools: Oak View, Smith's, and Grainger; three-teacher schools: Farm Valley, Deep Run, and Sharon; more-than-three-teacher schools: Pink Hill. The tests were also given in the first three grades in LaGrange and Kinston schools for purposes of comparison. (See Table 31.)

TABLE 31—Showing Total Number of Pupils Tested in Primary Reading by the Haggerty Reading Examination, Sigma I, in the Rural Schools, in LaGrange and Kinston Schools.
Type of SchoolNumber of Pupils in Each Grade
IIIIIITotal
Rural schools1167686278
LaGrange schools433437114
Kinston schools114178133425
Totals273288256817

There were in all about 900 test papers, but a number could not be accepted because of certain irregularities in administering the tests.

In the rural schools the grades were not sectioned, but in the LaGrange school the scores for the two sections of the first grade are reported separately. The second and third grades were not divided into sections. The scores for the Kinston school are given separately for the high and low sections of the second and third grades, and only the high sections of the first grade were tested, as the low sections had been in school only about two months. The low sections of the second and third grades were promoted to these grades at mid-term in February, which should be borne in mind when studying the tables and making comparisons.

TABLE 32—Showing the Median Score Made in Primary Reading in Each Grade From One to Three, Inclusive, in the Different Types of Schools and the Standard Scores for These Grades.
Type of SchoolMedian Scores—Grade
IIIIII
One-teacher05.521
Two-teacher11119
Three-teacher11121
More than three-teacher11319
Town (LaGrange)42328
City (Kinston)*41628
Standard scores62030

* The primary grades in the Kinston schools have practically one-half a school day only, as they are working under the double-shift system because of lack of sufficient classrooms.

The high section of Grade I in the LaGrange school made a score of 5 and the low section of Grade I in the same schools made a score of 3. The scores made by the different sections of the second and third grades of the Kinston school are as follows:

Second Grade, High Section20
Second Grade, Low Section8
Third Grade, High Section29
Third Grade, Low Section24

The low sections of the second and third grades of the Kinston school were promoted to grades two and three, respectively, at mid-term in February; therefore, having had only about two and a half months of the grade work while the high sections had had about seven months of the grade work.

b. Present Achievement Compared with Standards in Reading. From the above facts it can readily be seen that the poorest work in reading is done in the rural schools. The pupils in the first grade in the one-teacher schools tested during the fifth month of school could not score on a test that is partly made up of primer material—sentences composed of simple, easy words which should be recognized and understood by first-grade pupils the fifth month of school, or a sufficient number of sentences should be read and understood to result in at least a median score of 3 instead of 0. The median score for the first grades in the two-teacher, three-teacher and more than three-teacher





schools is only 1 in each instance, while the standard score for first grade is 6. The LaGrange and Kinston first grades are nearer up to standard for the time of year the tests were given.

As measured by the median scores, the second-grade pupils in the one-teacher schools do not make the first grade standard, and the third grade in the one-teacher schools makes a score a little above the standard score for the second grade. Rural schools of each type show distinctly inferior work in reading in grades one, two, and three. In no grade do the median scores of the rural pupils in any type of school equal the median scores of either LaGrange or Kinston pupils. In addition to the low scores made by the rural pupils, the fact that the rural pupils are older than the pupils in the town and city should be considered, thus offering more evidence that the work of the rural schools is far below what it should be, and when compared with the town and city schools it shows the inequality of opportunity when it comes to learning to read—the most important factor in the foundation work of the elementary schools. Because of the short school term, poor instruction, inadequate equipment, etc., it has taken them longer to reach the standard attained, even as low as it is. They either must spend two or three years in each grade or fall victims to the common practice in short-term rural schools of being promoted when they are poorly prepared for the work of the higher grades.

TABLE 33—Showing Median Scores in Primary Reading by Grades of Rural, Town and City Schools in Lenoir County, and in Four-Teacher Schools in Four Counties in North Carolina and in Virginia Rural Schools.
Type of SchoolGrades
IIIIII
Median Scores
Rural11119
Town (LaGrange)42328
City (Kinston)41628
North Carolina four-teacher schools in four counties1426.1
Virginia rural3.514.526.7
Standard scores62030

A study of the scores in Table 33 reveals quite clearly the fact that the pupils in the primary grades in the rural schools are not accomplishing what they should in each grade. The outstanding fact in the above table as shown by comparison is the great difference between the median scores of the grades in the rural schools and the median scores made in the same grades in LaGrange and Kinston schools. When the ages of the pupils in the rural schools are compared with the ages of the pupils in the same grades in LaGrange and Kinston Schools, it will be seen further that there is an even wider difference in the work of the rural schools and LaGrange and Kinston schools than the above table shows, as the pupils in the rural schools, grade by grade, are more advanced in years than the pupils in the same grades in the LaGrange and Kinston schools.

TABLE 34—Showing the Median Ages by Grades of the Pupils Who Were Given the Haggerty Reading Examination, Sigma I.
Type of SchoolGrades
IIIIII
Median Ages in Years and Fraction of a Year
One-teacher7.27.19.4
Two-teacher89.710.8
Three-teacher7.3910.3
More than three-teacher7.2910.2
Town (LaGrange)7.58.69.2
City (Kinston)78.29.1
Normal ages for grades6 to 77 to 88 to 9
Median age for rural schools in Lenoir County7.3910.6
Median age for Virginia rural schools with entrance age at 7 years.7.58.69.8

Only the ages of the pupils taking the tests are included in the above table. The entrance age in all North Carolina schools is approximately six years. It may range from five years, eight months, to six year, five months. With the entrance age at approximately six years, it is expected that the normal progress of a child to be one grade each year.

It will be noted that the median age in the first grade in the two-teacher rural school is eight years—one year above the median age for the same grade in the Kinston schools. Of course, there are in these first grades in the two-teacher schools a few pupils whose ages are less than the median age here given and there are pupils in these grades who are even older than eight years, but the majority of the pupils in the first grades in these schools are approximately eight years old, spending two years or more in school to make a grade, or taking two years in trying to master what is expected of a pupil the first year of school. Do these children have an educational opportunity equal to that of their neighbors in the Kinston school, or in any other better type school throughout the country where children have the opportunity to get a good start in their elementary education in the first grade? By referring to Table 33 again it will be noted that these same pupils in the first grades in the two-teacher rural schools of Lenoir County made the minimum score of 1 on the reading test when they should have made 5, at least, as first-grade pupils, and as eight-year-old pupils the score expected of them is about 18.

Again, a glance at Table 34 shows that the median age for the third grade in all rural schools is 10 years and seven months. At this age pupils in the Kinston school are completing the fourth-grade work. Looking at Table 33, we see that these pupils in the third grades in the rural schools with a median age of ten years and seven months are barely accomplishing the work in reading required of the second grade. According to age comparisons given here the pupils in the third grades in the rural schools are two years behind the pupils in the Kinston school in reading achievement.

Why this inequality of opportunity within the boundaries of a county?—For further study and comparison of facts, the following table is given, which shows the median scores and median ages in the different types of schools.





TABLE 35—Giving the Median Scores in the Haggerty Reading Test, Sigma I, and the Median Age of Pupils in Rural, Town, and City Schools and in Virginia Rural Schools.
Type of SchoolGrade IGrade IIGrade III
Median ScoresMedian AgesMedian ScoresMedian AgesMedian ScoresMedian Ages
Rural17.31191910.6
Town (LaGrange)47.5238.6289.2
City (Kinston)47.1168.2289.1
Virginia rural schools with entrance at 7 years3.57.514.58.626.59.8

c. Summarizing Statement. The median scores made by the pupils in the first, second, and third grades of the Lenoir County rural schools show that the pupils are achieving a very small per cent of the work in reading as outlined and required in these grades.

A pupil entering school at six years of age is expected to progress normally; that is, to make one grade each year. Therefore, the median ages for these grades would be, approximately, for the first grade, 6½ years; second grade, 7½ years, and third grade, 8½ years. The median ages of the pupils in the Lenoir County rural schools are as follows: first grade, 7.3 years; second grade, 9 years, and third grade, 10.6 years. For Kinston school the median ages for the same grades are respectively 7.1 years, 8.2 years, and 9.1 years.

It takes about two years on the average to complete the work required of each grade by the pupils in the first, second, and third grades of the rural schools in which the tests were given.

The pupils in these different types of rural schools are not reading as well as they should. They should have the opportunity to complete a year's work of standard grade each year of school.

2. GRAMMAR GRADES.

a. HOW WELL ARE THE PUPILS READING?

b. STANDARDS IN READING.

c. SUMMARIZING STATEMENT.

a. How Well Are the Pupils Reading? With a view of finding out whether or not the pupils in the elementary grades of the rural schools of Lenoir County have sufficient mastery of reading as a tool to acquire knowledge and to interpret this knowledge in the light of present-day events and situations, a silent reading test was given. The Thorndike-McCall Reading Scale, Form 5, was used. In order to meet this test a pupil must be able to read and to understand what he has read. This test measures the power or capacity of the pupils to understand more and more difficult paragraphs and to answer printed questions about these paragraphs.

The Thorndike-McCall Reading Scale begins with short paragraphs made up of simple sentences to be read, and of questions asking for certain answers in reading. As the child proceeds with the test he finds that the material increases in difficulty. Good third-grade pupils should easily read the first

one of these paragraphs given and readily answer the questions concerning it. The other paragraphs are successively more difficult until the tenth and last, which is too difficult for eight-grade pupils, and few pupils can answer the questions in the last paragraph correctly. The first, fifth and ninth paragraphs, together with the questions on each, are given here:

Read this and then write the answers. Read it again if you need to:

Fred lives in the country. He likes to hunt and fish, and has a gun that cost sixteen dollars. His sister Grace keeps hens and ducks, and sells the eggs. She is learning to play the piano, and goes to Miss Thomas for a lesson every Saturday. She likes music, but Fred doesn't.

1. What does Grace sell?.........................

2. What two things does Fred like to do?.........................

3. On what day does Grace go for her piano lesson?.........................

Read this and then write the answers. Read it again if you need to:

Inside the big box made of wood and iron that stands under the bed there is a box just like it, only smaller, and a brass key to open the small box. Whoever opens it will find three keys, one of gold, one of silver, and one of steel. The first opens the door of the red room, the last opens the door of the blue room. The other opens the outside gate. Every key has a ring.

18. With what key is the small box opened?.........................

19. What will you find in the little box?.........................

20. With what key is the outside gate opened?.........................

Read this and then write the answers. Read it again if you need to:

However certain it may seem to be that men work only because they must, and would avoid labor except for food, clothing and luxuries that are its rewards, the facts may well be to the contrary. It can hardly be the case that men dislike work because they wish to be utterly idle. For mere rest, mere inactivity, is not commonly enjoyed. To have nothing to do is not what men seek. Were that so, we should envy the prisoner shut up in his cell. If men had to choose between a life spent at eight hours of work daily in a factory and a life spent at eight hours of sitting on a throne without moving hand or foot, many of them would, after trying both, choose the former. Activity of body or mind, at which a man can succeed, is, in and of itself, rather enjoyed than disliked.

30. If the absence of any activity were what we wished for, what would be our attitude toward a prisoner in his cell?.........................

31. According to the paragraph, what even would a prisoner welcome?.........................

32. Those who disagree with the paragraph contend that men work for what inducement?.........................

33. In what respect is a prisoner in his cell like a man with a million dollars?.........................”

Exactly thirty minutes is allowed for this test. The final score for each pupil was tabulated and the median or average scores (which are considered about the same) for each grade in each type of school are given in Table No. 38, together with the standard score for each particular grade. This reading test has been used with pupils in many other schools, so that it is





known what scores pupils of the several grades should make. For example, pupils completing the fourth grade and ready to begin the fifth-grade work should make an average score of 41.8; pupils half-way through the fifth grade should make an average score of 44.9. There are similar standards for all the grades from the third on up. The median or average score for each grade shows how well the pupils in the different grades in the different types of schools are reading and a comparison with the standard score for the particular grade will show whether or not they are reading as well as they should.

The tests were given in grades four to seven inclusive in the 42 rural schools of Lenoir County, and for purposes of comparison with the better types of schools within the same county, the tests were given in grades four to seven inclusive in the LaGrange and Kinston schools. There is no detailed discussion of the results of the tests given in the LaGrange and Kinston schools as the chief purpose in giving the tests in these schools was simply to contrast conditions in the poorer type rural schools with conditions in nearby town and city school systems.

TABLE 36—Showing That 665 Pupils in Grades Four to Seven in the 42 Rural Schools, 146 Pupils in Grades Four to Seven in the LaGrange School, and 476 Pupils in the Same Grades in the Kinston School. a Total of 1,287 Children, Were Tested in Reading, Using the Thorndike-McCall Reading Scale, Form 5.
Type of SchoolNumber of SchoolsNumber Pupils in GradesTotal
IVVVIVII
Rural schools42230187136112665
Town (LaGrange)142343931146
City (Kinston)1115147114100476
Totals443873682892431,287

TABLE 37—Showing the Total Number of Pupils in Each Grade in Each Type of School Who Were Given the Thorndike-McCall Reading Test, and the Number of Schools of Each Type in Which the Tests Were Given.
Type of SchoolNumber of SchoolsGradesTotal
IVVVIVII
One-teacher152346201099
Two-teacher19119824948298
Three-teacher765404825178
More than three-teacher12319192990
Town142343931146
City1115147114100476
Totals443873682892431,287

Table 38 gives the median scores made by the pupils on the Thorndike-McCall Reading Scale, which was used in finding out how well the pupils in the rural schools read.

TABLE 38—Showing the Median Scores in the Thorndike-McCall Reading Scale in Grades Four to Seven Inclusive in All Rural Schools, in LaGrange and Kinston Schools.
Type of School1Median Scores
Rural (42 schools)34424548
Town (LaGrange)40464850
City (Kinston)41455257
North Carolina gradesIVVVIVII

Standard gradesIIIIVVVIVIIVIII
Thorndike-McCall standard scores37.341.84853.758.360.9

1 The median scores given for rural schools were obtained from the assembled scores made by all the pupils in a given grade in each type of school. For instance, the median fourth-grade score was obtained by tabulating the scores made by each pupil in the fourth grade in each type of rural school and the median of the complete tabulation of fourth grade scores from all the rural schools was found.2 The double line in the table above represents the course of study which is supposed to be completed in seven years in the Lenoir County schools, (city, town, and rural) and which is usually completed in the standard school of eight grades in eight years. This line also shows the equation of the seven-grade to the eight-grade system. The standard grades and standard scores are below the double line and the rural, town, and city scores and grades of Lenoir County are above the line.

From these two tables, 37 and 38, we see that, first, the testing program was as complete as possible, since every child in attendance in grades four to seven in the different types of schools was tested; second, the median score for each grade in different types of schools is given; and third, the standard score for each grade in this test, which shows what is expected of a pupil in the particular subject in each grade.

TABLE 39—Showing the Median Scores on the Thorndike-McCall Reading Scale, Form 5, for Grades Four to Seven Inclusive in the Three-Teacher Schools, the Pink Hill Consolidated School, and the LaGrange and Kinston Schools.
Type of SchoolMedian Scores
Three-teacher (7 schools)334044.548
Pink Hill Consolidated School (ten-teacher school).35433944
LaGrange (town)40464850
Kinston (city)41455257
Lenoir County rural, town, and city school gradesIVVVIVII

Standard gradesIIIIVVVIVIIVIII
Standard scores37.341.84853.758.360.9

From Table 39 it can be seen that the facts given for the two larger type rural schools of the county show by comparison with schools in LaGrange and Kinston, and with standard scores that even the best schools now provided in the rural districts are inadequate to meet the present-day demands, and that they do not measure up to what is expected of a good school.

b. Standards in Reading. Pupils completing a certain grade are expected to reach the standard score in reading provided for that grade. And





it is expected that a pupil make a grade each year from the time he enters school and to complete the elementary school in seven years in the present seven-grade system in this State. Whether or not the pupils in the rural schools of Lenoir County reach the accepted grade standards in reading for each of the grades in the elementary schools at a given age recognized as the normal age for a pupil of that grade can be determined by a study of Table 40.

TABLE 40—Showing the Median Scores on the Thorndike-McCall Reading Scale, Form 5, and the Median Age of the Pupils in Grades Four to Seven in the Different Types of Rural Schools, in the LaGrange and Kinston Schools.
Type of SchoolMedian ScoreMedian AgeMedian ScoreMedian AgeMedian ScoreMedian AgeMedian ScoreMedian Age
One-teacher3511.54413.150145314.1
Two-teacher3512431347144814.4
Three-teacher3311.4401344.513.54814.4
More than three-teacher3510.2431239134414
Town (LaGrange)4010.34612.14813.45014.5
City (Kinston)4110.34511.252125713.7
North Carolina gradesIVVVIVII

Standard gradesIVVVIVIIVII
Standard scores41.84853.758.360.9

The relation of the reading achievement in the Lenoir County schools to the normal reading achievement of the country as a whole will be best understood by a study of this table, as the figures show graphically just what the standard is for every grade, and how the pupils in the different grades in the different types of schools measure up to it. Rural schools of different types may be compared with each other and the rural schools compared with the town and city schools in the same county.

TABLE 41—Showing the Median Ages and the Median Scores on Reading (Thorndike-McCall Reading Scale, Form 5) for the Pupils in the Schools of Lenoir County, LaGrange, and Kinston.
Type of SchoolMedian ScoreMedian AgeMedian ScoreMedian AgeMedian ScoreMedian AgeMedian ScoreMedian Age
Rural (42 schools)3411.54213.34513.74814.4
Town (LaGrange)4010.34612.14813.45014.5
City (Kinston)4110.34511.252125713.7
Approximate normal age for grade at time of year tests were given10.311.412.513.5
North Carolina gradesIVVVIVII

Standard gradesIVVVIVIIVIII
Standard score41.84853.758.360.9

(a) Grade Progress. From a study of the tables given here it is evident that in almost every type of school there is some progress made from grade to grade. There is not a normal step of progress, however, between each grade in each type of school, but there is distinct progress, however slight it may be, from one grade to the next, except in the following instances:

(1) From grade four to grade five in the Pink Hill school there is a loss instead of a gain in the score.

(2) In the two-teacher schools the median score for the sixth grade is 47, and for the seventh grade 48, a difference of one point, when it normally should be five points or more.

(3) In the LaGrange school progress from the fifth to the sixth grade, as shown by the median scores for each grade, is below normal. It is really about fifty per cent of what it should be. And the same condition is also found in the progress noted between the sixth and seventh grades in the same school.

It is apparent that as these pupils go from grade to grade in these schools they are accomplishing 50 per cent or less of the work which should be done in each grade before being promoted to the next highest grade.

The pupils of the rural schools, on the average, are all handicapped by being graded too high. Pupils making a median score of 35 or less, which is below what good third-grade pupils should make (37.3 being the median score for third-grade pupils throughout the country), are classified as fourth-grade pupils in all the rural schools. No doubt they are trying to use fourth-grade texts, and it is no great wonder that they cannot make normal progress from grade to grade. Pupils making a median score of 39, which indicates that in reading achievement their score is about equal to that of the second month of the fourth-grade work, are classified as sixth-grade pupils in the Pink Hill school, and are attempting to make progress in the use of the sixth-grade texts. In the same school pupils who are ready to enter fifth grade in reading are placed in the seventh grade. Other instances of similar type may be noted in the study of the facts presented in Table 39.

It is not difficult to understand why it takes the majority of the pupils in the rural schools more than one year to complete a grade. Of course the short school term and the poor instruction received are important factors in this retardation, however, it is clear from the above statement of facts that one other contributing factor to the unsatisfactory progress of the pupils in the rural schools is the practice of grading and classifying the pupils higher than the attainments in reading will justify. Of course, on the other hand, there are a few pupils who are classified too low. This question will be discussed in the chapter on organization.

(b) Age and Reading Progress. The ages of the pupils should be considered in interpreting the reading scores in Tables 40 and 41. In Table 40 the median scores made in each grade in each type of school are given, and also the median ages of the pupils making these scores. When the median age is given it is understood, of course, that fifty per cent of the pupils are older than the median age given. In the one-teacher schools the ages for the fourth grade range from 9.3 years to 15.3 years, and in the sixth grade in the two-teacher schools the range is from 11 years to 19 years of age. This is a fair sample of the range of ages in each grade in the one-, two-, and three-teacher schools, as there is approximately the same great difference in the ages of the oldest and the youngest in each of the grades—a difference of 6 or 8 years.

According to Table 40, the pupils in the one-, two-, and three-teacher schools are from one to one and a half years older than the pupils in the same grades in Pink Hill, LaGrange, and Kinston schools except in the seventh grades.

The reading scores made by the pupils in the rural schools are considered less creditable when the ages of these pupils are compared with the ages of pupils in other schools who make the same score. For instance, in Table 41





we see that the median age for the fourth-grade pupils in the rural schools of Lenoir County is 11.5 years, and the median score made on reading by these same pupils is 34, whereas the median score made by pupils 11.5 years old in good schools throughout the country is 48. Therefore, it is quite evident that these pupils are more than two whole years behind other pupils of their own age in reading achievement. Again we see in Table 41 that the seventh-grade pupils in the rural schools make a median score of 48 in reading and the median age for this grade is 14.4. Pupils in the same grades in average schools throughout the country make a score of 48 at the age of 11.4 years. These facts show that the pupils in the seventh grade in the rural schools of Lenoir County are three years older than pupils making the same median score in the average school throughout the country. Further study of the table will produce additional evidence to prove the statement that the pupils in the one-, two-, and three-teacher schools are taking from one to two years longer to attain creditable standards in reading than it takes for the pupils in the same grades in the LaGrange and Kinston schools and good schools throughout the country to reach these standards.

(c) Summarizing Statement. (a) From a study of Table 41 the following facts are derived:

The rural schools do not measure up in reading in any grade, and from a comparison of the scores for each grade with the median scores of the LaGrange and Kinston schools, and with the standard score, it is plain that the pupils in the rural schools fall far short of what is to be expected of pupils in these grades.

The fourth grades in the rural schools are one and a half years below in reading achievement; the fifth grades about one year below; the sixth grades one and a half years below; and the seventh grades two whole years or more below the grade standard in reading ability. This indicates that the work of the pupils in the seventh grades in the rural schools at the close of the year is about what is expected of a good fifth-grade pupil. (See Table 41.)

No doubt these pupils are further handicapped by trying to use texts in subjects other than reading, the content of which is beyond their comprehension. It is safe to conclude that no pupil of fifth-grade reading ability placed in the seventh grade can make reasonable progress in other content subjects, such as history, geography, etc. His progress in the seventh grade is surely limited to the more mechanical phases of the work, and what he gains through oral instruction. Certainly he is not equipped with the ability and power to read the seventh grade subject-matter with ease and fluency and comprehend and interpret what he has read. Even the mere calling of words, or silent recognition of words or sentences is a difficult process, much less the experience of getting the thought and understanding what he has read.

In the fourth and fifth grades there is little significant difference between the LaGrange and Kinston schools, but in the sixth and seventh grades the LaGrange school is not up to standard, the sixth-grade pupils near the close of the term making the median score usually made at the close of the fifth grade, and the seventh grade in the LaGrange schools is one and a half years or more behind in comprehension in reading. The median scores in all grades in the Kinston school are fairly satisfactory for the time of year the tests were given, yet there is room for considerable improvement in each grade, and especially in the fifth.

(b) Table 39 presents the facts which prove the statement that the best types of rural schools in the county are not adequately meeting the needs of the pupils attending.

The median scores for the different grades in the seven three-teacher schools of the county are very low in comparison with the median scores made in the same grades in LaGrange and Kinston schools. The same may be said of the

median scores in the largest type rural school in the county system—the ten-teacher consolidated school at Pink Hill, which is far below what a good rural school should be. The median score for the fourth grades in all three-teacher schools is 33; for the same grade in Pink Hill, 35; LaGrange, 40, and Kinston, 41. The median scores are all uniformly low in the fourth, fifth, sixth, and seventh grades in the three-teacher rural schools, being from one to two years below the standard which should be reached by each grade. Likewise, the median scores for the Pink Hill school are low when compared with scores made in good schools elsewhere, and especially is the work poor in the sixth grade in this school, as the median score of 39 is about what is expected of pupils the third month of their fourth year in school. (The standard fourth grade, third month.)

(c) In Table 40 we see that not only is the reading achievement of the rural children in each grade in each type of school exceedingly low according to the median scores attained on the Thorndike-McCall Reading Test, but that it has taken them a great deal longer in number of school months than it should have to accomplish even this much. The median ages for each grade given along with the median score for that grade show that the pupils in the rural schools (except in the fourth grade in Pink Hill) are from one to two years older than the pupils in the same grades in the LaGrange and Kinston schools.

In Table 41 we find that the median age for the fourth grade in all rural schools is 11.5 years, and the median score in reading for this grade in all rural schools is 34. Pupils 11.5 years old should be in the fifth grade normally and pupils scoring 34 in a test should be about the middle of the third grade in reading achievement (about 8.5 years old), which makes them fully three years behind for their age. Apparently this is approximately the time lost by the children in the fourth grade in the rural schools whose median score is 34.

Again, the median age for the seventh grades in all rural schools is 14.4 years, and the median score on reading for these same pupils is 48. These pupils whose median age is the same as the median age of first-year high school pupils in good schools average in achievement in reading the same as good fifth-grade pupils.

By a further study of the facts and comparisons which may be made from Tables 40 and 41, it is not difficult to see that the pupils in the rural schools read poorly, and that it is taking them from one to three years longer to advance this far than it takes pupils in the LaGrange and Kinston schools and in good schools throughout the country.

III. ARE THE PUPILS IN THE RURAL SCHOOLS SPELLING AS
WELL AS THEY SHOULD?

1. TESTING THE SPELLING ABILITY OF THE PUPILS.

2. RESULTS OF THE TESTS.

3. SUMMARIZING STATEMENT.

1. Testing the Spelling Ability of the Pupils. In reviewing the daily schedules of the rural schools of Lenoir County, of the LaGrange and Kinston schools, it is found that provision is made for the teaching of spelling in the elementary grades and the course of study prescribed for these schools suggests the most effective method of training the child to be a good speller, and to be able at least to spell correctly words commonly used in ordinary written communications.

How well pupils are taught to spell may best be discovered by giving each individual child a spelling test which is so constructed and standardized that it will yield results which may be considered an accurate measure of that





pupil's ability to spell and to measure the extent of his development in spelling ability as he advances from grade to grade. For this purpose a group test of sixty words, ten words from each of six different columns, ranging from third to eighth-grade lists, of the Buckingham Extension of the Ayres Spelling Scale, was given each pupil from grade four to seven, inclusive, in the forty-two rural schools in LaGrange and Kinston schools. This included all pupils in attendance in these four grades in all types of schools at the time the test was given. This large number of words, ranging in difficulty from the third through the eighth grade, was given to all grades rather than a limited number of words to each grade separately for the reason that when a pupil spells correctly all of the words of a given list, specially arranged for one grade, we do not have a measure of his spelling ability. He does not have an opportunity to show how well he can spell, and it would be impossible to answer the question at the head of this section, “Are the Pupils in the Rural Schools Spelling as Well as They Should?” We first must find out how well they are spelling, and by comparison with grade standards find out how well they should spell. The sixty words of this group test are selected and arranged in a scale so that a third grade pupil may find the beginning words of the list easy to spell and the words, a graded list, increase in difficulty on through the list until an eight grade pupil cannot easily complete the test. All the words of the list are in frequent use, by the pupils of the elementary grades, and are such as known to be in the writing vocabulary of elementary school children. The words are a fair sample of the level of difficulty over which the children of the elementary grades should be tested. The large number of test words and the manner of arrangement of the list on a scale affords a test which may be relied upon to measure fairly accurately the spelling ability of each individual pupil in the several grades. The individual pupil's score is the number of words spelled correctly. If a pupil is able to spell a certain number of words in the test, for instance, the number of words which represent the number an average fifth grade pupil throughout the county should spell, he should be classified as being able to spell fifth grade words or rated as having fifth grade ability in spelling.

The list of words used in finding the spelling achievement of the pupils is given below. Uniform directions were followed in giving the spelling words to each and every class or group of children. They were also given under as uniform conditions as possible. Each word was pronounced twice by the examiner and the pupils given ample time to write the word.

The test was given the third grade pupils in nine separate rural schools, but the average scores made by these so-called third grade pupils was so low—the number of words spelled correctly so few—that it was thought a waste of time to continue to give the test to third grade pupils, so no report is here given for the third grades.

List of sixty words selected from the Buckingham Extension of the Ayres’ Spelling Scale:

1.catch13.elect25.prompt37.doubt
2.warm14.jail26.special38.further
3.clothing15.retire27.wonderful39.local
4.gone16.district28.await40.particular
5.track17.royal29.justice41.circumstance
6.dash18.pleasure30.present42.finally
7.fight19.population31.pleasant43.difficult
8.stop20.judge32.investigate44.beginning
9.grant21.arrange33.witness45.expense
10.news22.imprison34.possible46.probably
11.afraid23.perhaps35.believe47.relief
12.rather24.whose36.government48.colonies

49.distinguish52.cordially55.extreme58.appreciate
50.earliest53.proceed56.athletic59.emergency
51.character54.practical57.sincerely60.organization

Table No. 42 shows the total number of pupils tested in each of the grades from four to seven, inclusive, in each type of rural school, and also in LaGrange and Kinston schools. These figures show that the scope of the testing program was sufficient to justify an average score which could be considered a fair measure of the spelling ability of the pupils in the different grades in the different types of schools. Following this is a table showing the average scores of the pupils in the different grades in these various types of schools. This grade average is a very satisfactory measure of the work of the group and easily admits of comparison with the average score of other groups and with the standard score.

TABLE 42—Showing the Total Number of Pupils in Grades Four to Seven in the One-teacher, Two-teacher, Three-teacher and More than Three-teacher Rural Schools and in LaGrange and Kinston who were Given the Spelling Test.
Type of SchoolNumber of SchoolsNumber of Pupils in Grades
IVVVIVIITotal
One-teacher152346201099
Two-teacher19119824948298
Three-teacher765404825178
More than three-teacher12319192990
Town (LaGrange)142343931146
City (Kinston)1115147114100476
Totals443873682892431,287

2. Results of the Tests. In Tables 43 and 44 are given the average scores made by each grade in the spelling test given. The score made by each pupil is the number of words spelled correctly.

TABLE 43—Showing the Average Spelling Scores Made on the Spelling Test by Pupils in Grades Four to Seven, Inclusive, in the Different Types of Schools.
Type of SchoolGrades
IVVVIVII1VIII
One-teacher19284243
Two-teacher17273642
Three-teacher14253642
More than three-teacher2325.63137
Town (LaGrange)22364244
City (Kinston)22354245
Standard score30.437.847.750.3154.4

1 This is the standard score for the last year of the eight-grade system. The seven-grade school systems in counties and cities in North Carolina attempt to complete the elementary course as out-lined for the eight-grade systems. From this standpoint the pupils of the seven-grade systems are expected to make as high a score in the test as pupils completing the elementary course in any eight-grade or standard school system throughout the country.



TABLE 44—Showing the Average Scores for Grades Four to Seven, Inclusive, for Rural Schools, for LaGrange and Kinston Schools.
Type of SchoolGrades
IVVVIVII1VIII
Rural18263641
Town (LaGrange)22364344
City (Kinston)22354245
Standard score30.437.847.750.3154.4

1 See note attached to Table 43.

In interpreting the scores it should be remembered that the tests were given near the close of the term for each rural school. The Pink Hill school, the LaGrange and Kinston schools had four or more weeks longer to work to reach the grade standard before the close of school.

The above table gives the average scores made by each grade from four to seven in each type of rural school, in LaGrange and Kinston schools, and these grade averages may be compared in interpreting the results. In comparing the average scores made in each grade in each type of school with the standard score for that grade it should be noted that the fourth grade averages in all types of schools are more unsatisfactory than the results in the other grades and they are far below the standard score for the fourth grade. The fourth grade in the Pink Hill school scored highest in this test, but did not reach an acceptable score for the work of this grade. While achievement in the fourth grades is most unsatisfactory, the results show that in no instance is the work in spelling up to standard, the nearest approach being the score of the fifth grade in the LaGrange school. In all types of schools the average scores for the seventh grades show that in spelling achievement they are not accomplishing what should be expected of them, and by a study of the figures given in this table it is easily seen that the seventh grade in each type of school is a year, a year and a half, and more, below what is expected of pupils in spelling achievement in this grade throughout the country.

A study of the above data results in the conclusion that near the end of their elementary school course these schools are short of the spelling achievement expected of them.

This table also shows that the progress or advancement from grade to grade based on the results of the test is unsatisfactory. This may be partly due to lack of proper organization of grade work and classification of pupils. Evidence of disregard for this important factor in pupil advancement through the grades is shown in the wide range of scores within the separate grades. A large number of grades in the different types of schools showed a surprising range in this respect. In one rural school a pupil made a score of three and another pupil in the same grade made a score of forty-six. There is also a very great overlapping of abilities. The best pupils in grade four spell better than the average pupils in grade seven in the same school.

All of these facts together may mean that the pupils of these schools are very poorly classified so far as spelling is concerned. Children who can make a score of forty six in this test should not be classed with children who can make no more than three.

Comparison of the work of each grade in the rural schools with the work in the schools of LaGrange and Kinston may be more easily done and the comparison better understood by the arrangement of scores as shown in

Table No. 45. The individual scores made by all fourth-grade pupils in every type of rural school were added and the average grade score secured. This method was followed in securing the grade average for each of the grades four, five, six and seven. These scores represent as accurately as may be determined, possibly in a county survey, the spelling achievement of the pupils in grades four to seven.

3. Summarizing Statement. a. The pupils in the third grades in the rural schools could not make a reasonably acceptable score on this test in spelling, whereas pupils in the third grade in schools throughout the country are expected to make at least a median score of 19.6.

b. Pupils having completed the elementary grades should make a score of 54.4 on this test. What they actually did make is as follows: The average score for the seventh grade in one-teacher schools is 43; two-teacher, 42; three-teacher, 42; more than three-teacher, 37; LaGrange, 44; and Kinston, 45. The pupils in the seventh grade in the more-than-three-teacher schools would be classified as fifth grade pupils according to the results from the spelling test, as the median score for this grade is only 37, less than the standard score for the fifth grade by .8 of a point. It is evident that more thorough work should be done in spelling in all types of schools before promoting pupils from the elementary school into the high school grades.

(c) The standard score for the third grade is 19.6. The average score for the fourth grade in the rural schools is 18, one and six-tenths below what is expected of good third-grade pupils. A study of Table 44 shows that each grade in the rural schools is more than a whole grade behind in spelling achievement.

That the pupils in the rural schools are not spelling as well as they should is an unquestionable fact, and such results as these must be regarded as undeniable evidence that the children of these schools have not had an opportunity in any way commensurate with their special needs, and cannot because of this lack of opportunity compare favorably in spelling accomplishment with their next door neighbors, the pupils of the LaGrange and Kinston schools.

IV. ARE THE PUPILS IN THE RURAL SCHOOLS WORKING
ARITHMETIC AS WELL AS THEY SHOULD?

1. PRESENT ACHIEVEMENT IN ADDITION, SUBTRACTION, MULTIPLICATION AND DIVISION.

2. HIGH AND LOW POINTS IN TEST RESULTS.

3. REASONING ABILITY.

4. SUMMARIZING STATEMENT.

1. Present Achievement in Addition, Subtraction, Multiplication and Division. Speed and accuracy in the four fundamental operations, and the ability to reason out problems are the essential factors in the mastery of arithmetic.

To determine whether or not pupils have attained satisfactory standards in these essentials, standard measures of these two phases of arithmetic were applied to the work in grades four to seven in the forty two rural schools of Lenoir County, in LaGrange and Kinston schools, as shown in Tables 46 and 47.

The actual achievement of the pupils in the fundamental operations is stated in definite terms as discovered by the Woody Arithmetic Tests, Series B, and a separate test was given for reasoning ability. The Woody Arithmetic Test,





Series B, consists of a series of problems in addition, subtraction, multiplication and division beginning with very simple problems and advancing to more difficult ones.

The following are representative examples for each of the four scales:

Addition.
225+42=$12.50547⅓+⅓=4.0125
316.751971.5907
15.756854.10
6788.673
456
393
525
240
142
25.09+100.4+25+98.28+19.3614=

Subtraction.
816505674822¾-1=8⅞27
59251064935¾12⅝
5 yds. 1 ft. 4 in.7.3-3.00081=
2 yds. 2 ft. 8 in.

Multiplication.
3×7=5096242876.25987¾2¼×4½×1½-.0963⅛
6234.253.225.084

Division.
3)64÷2=8)58569)050÷7=

⅞ of 624=.003).09369) 69 lbs. 9 oz.62.50÷1¼=

In the addition scale are 19 examples, in the substraction scale 15, in the multiplication scale 20, and in the division scale 15 examples. Ten minutes is the time limit for each of these four scales, forty minutes given to complete the four scales in Series B. The number of problems solved correctly in the time given is the measure of the pupil's skill in accurate computation. The grade score was found by taking the median score for all pupils in that grade.

These grade scores were then compared with the standard scores obtained from a large number of pupils in good schools in other states. For the four tests combined standard scores for each grade from four to eight are given in Table 46.

The sum of each pupil's scores on the four scales was combined into one final score and the median score for each grade, four to seven, inclusive, in each type of school is given in Table 46. The median or average score is a good measure of what the class as a whole can do.

The following table shows the total number of pupils tested in grades four to seven in each type of rural school, in LaGrange and Kinston schools. The total number in this table is the total number of pupils in attendance in grades four to seven, inclusive, in the 42 rural schools, in LaGrange and Kinston schools at the time the tests were given.

TABLE 45—Showing Total Number of Pupils in Each Grade in Each Type of School who Were Given the Woody Arithmetic Tests, Series B.
Type of SchoolNumber of SchoolsNumber of Pupils in Grades
IVVVIVIITotal
One-teacher152346201099
Two-teacher19119824948298
Three-teacher765404825178
More than three-teacher12319192990
Town (LaGrange)142343931146
City (Kinston)1115147114100476
Totals443873682892431,287

The median scores made in each grade from four to seven, inclusive, in each type of school as given in Table 46 represent facts concerning the present achievement in the fundamentals of arithmetic by the pupils in these grades in the different types of schools. The Woody Standard scores for grades four to eight given in this table may be considered as a definite end or goal to be reached. Whether or not the pupils in grades four to seven in the different types of schools measure up to the accepted standard for each grade can be determined by a study of the following table. Pupils completing the seventh grade in the seven-grade elementary course are supposed to cover the same work as the eighth grade in the eight-grade elementary schools. Since the standard norms are for the eight-grade elementary system, the median scores made by the seventh-grade pupils in the seven-grade elementary course should reach the eighth grade standard.

TABLE 46—Showing the Median Scores on the Woody Arithmetic Scale, Series B, in Grades Four to Seven, Inclusive, in the Different Types of Rural Schools and in LaGrange and Kinston Schools.
Type of SchoolGrades
IVVVIVII1VIII
One-teacher253546.544
Two-teacher24344346
Three-teacher333039.544
More than three-teacher26303841
Town (LaGrange)3145.54649
City (Kinston)31455154
Standard score31425361165

1 This is the standard score for the last year of the eight-grade system. The seven-grade school system in counties and cities in North Carolina attempt to complete the elementary course of study as outlined for standard eight-grade systems. From this standpoint the pupils of the seven-grade school systems are expected to make as high a score in the tests as pupils completing the elementary course in any eight-grade or standard school system throughout the country.



TABLE 47—Showing the Median Scores on the Woody Arithmetic Scale, Series B, in Grades Four to Seven in the Rural Schools, in LaGrange and Kinston Schools, and the Median Scores for the Seventh Grade in Rural Schools in Forsyth County.
Type of SchoolGrades
IVVVIVIIVIII
Rural27324244
Town (LaGrange)3145.54649
City (Kinston)31455154
Rural schools of Forsyth County257
Standard score31425361165

1 See note attached to Table No. 46.2 The Woody Arithmetic Scale, Series B, was given to 295 pupils in the seventh grades in the different types of schools of Forsyth County, with the following results:

Median score for all pupils tested57
Median score for schools having one, two, or three teachers only50
Median score for the larger type schools55

The Rural Supervisor of Forsyth County has been conducting a campaign for greater efficiency in arithmetic for a period of over two years. She has frequently used standardized practice tests to improve the work and standardized tests for checking up on the work to find the weak places in order to promote the use of remedial measures to strengthen the work and to increase achievement in the fundamentals of arithmetic.

2. High and Low Points in Test Results. An examination of the scores as shown in Table 47 reveals many interesting facts concerning the achievement in the fundamentals of arithmetic as well as the present status of the school organization for the county as a whole. In a large per cent of the rural schools the pupils were poorly graded so far as abilities in arithmetic were concerned. Some pupils in lower grades were able to work as difficult problems as those solved by many pupils in the upper grades.

The median score for the fourth grades in all three-teacher schools is above the standard score and in this instance only do the rural schools measure up to the standard. The fourth grades in all other types of rural schools show a median score below standard. The low median scores for the grades in the Pink Hill school (more than three-teacher school) are partially accounted for in this way. When the tests were given this school had during the term taken in a number of one-teacher schools in the consolidated district and a large number of the pupils tested were from these smaller schools lately admitted into the school system. The Pink Hill school at the time the tests were given was confronted with the problem of better gradation and classification for these new pupils who were admitted to the classes in the same grades they were in when at work in the smaller type schools where the school term was only six months and one or two teachers taught all grades. If the pupils tested had been those in regular attendance from year to year in the eight-months-term school at Pink Hill before the consolidated district was formed and before the pupils from the one-teacher, short-term school were admitted, then, no doubt, the scores would have more nearly reached the standard for each grade.

Again, the median scores in the fifth and sixth grades in the one-teacher schools are higher than the median scores made in the same grades in all other types of rural schools. This may be accounted for when you refer to Table 45 and find that in all fifteen one-teacher schools there were enrolled only 99 pupils in grades four to seven, inclusive, when the tests were given. This in all probability indicates that only the best prepared and strongest

pupils in these grades are continuing their work in the one-teacher schools, the pupils doing a poorer class of work having dropped out of school. The seventh grade in the one-teacher school does not measure up so well as the fourth, fifth and sixth grades. In all the fifteen one-teacher schools of the county there are only ten pupils enrolled in the seventh grade. The median score for the seventh grade in the one-teacher school is less than the median score of the fifth grade in the LaGrange and Kinston schools, and is far below the standard score for the sixth grade. As shown by the median scores the pupils in the seventh grades in the one-teacher schools cannot add, subtract, multiply and divide as well as the pupils in the fifth grades in LaGrange and Kinston schools.

Except in the fourth grades in the three-teacher rural schools and the fourth and fifth grades in LaGrange and Kinston schools, the median scores show that the work in the fundamentals of arithmetic in every type of school in the county is unsatisfactory. As measured by the Woody Tests, the development of skill and accuracy in the fundamental processes of arithmetic in the rural schools, in LaGrange and Kinston schools is not up to standard with the exceptions stated above. This defect or weakness is made clearer when it is understood that the Woody Standard scores are for the beginning of the school year, and each of these grades in the different types of schools was tested during the month of March or April, thus having had six months or more of work beyond the beginning of the year.

A further comparison of the scores, as shown in Table 47, emphasizes the fact that the work in grades six and seven in all the rural schools is below standard and that the work in each grade in the rural schools is most unsatisfactory. A study of the table given below shows that the median score for fifth-grade pupils in all types of rural schools is little better than the standard score at the beginning of the fourth grade, making them almost two years below what is normally expected of them. Accordingly, the sixth and seventh grades are one whole year behind the standards for those grades.

The commercial world demands that the school train its pupils to add, subtract, multiply and divide with speed and accuracy. From the training given in the grades from the fourth through the seventh, the pupils in the schools should become one hundred per cent proficient in these processes and in the sixth and seventh grades they should have automatic control of these tools and be able to do simple arithmetical calculations rapidly and with absolute accuracy. The results of the tests as shown by the median scores for the different grades in the different types of schools present the achievement of the pupils in the fundamentals of arithmetic and it is clearly shown that they are not doing the work that should be expected of them, and that the rural schools are far behind the Kinston city schools.

3. Reasoning Ability. The first consideration in the teaching of arithmetic is to train pupils to use the tools of arithmetic, the processes of addition, substraction, multiplication and division, with speed and accuracy. While it is important that pupils develop skill and accuracy in the use of these processes, it is even more important that they develop the ability to reason out problems and to apply these processes to real problems. Pupils need to know when to add, subtract, multiply and divide, as well as to be skilled in rapid and accurate calculation of numbers. They should be trained to think out the steps to follow in solving problems similar to those they will meet in daily experiences outside the school. Practice in solving practical everyday problems is one of the best means whereby a pupil may be trained to reason quantitatively and also to develop habits of correct procedure in solving problems.





To test the reasoning ability of the sixth- and seventh-grade pupils Monroe's Standardized Reasoning Test in Arithmetic, Test II, Form 1, was used. This test was given to 426 pupils in the sixth and seventh grades of the rural schools of every type, of LaGrange and Kinston schools. Table 48 shows the median scores made on the test in the different types of schools, and the standard scores for these grades. It was not practical to continue the testing program long enough to give the reasoning tests to all pupils in grades four to seven, so it was thought best to test the pupils who were in grades six and seven, the last two years of the elementary school course, to find out whether or not they had developed the ability to reason out practical problems arising in daily experiences. The pupils were given enough time to complete the tests, as was indicated in the instructions, or to try them all, but papers were collected after twenty-five minutes.

Monroe's Standardized Reasoning Test II, Form 1, consists of fifteen problems, the difficulty or value of which has been determined both for correct principle and correct answer. Each problem is scored for two values:

(a) For correct reasoning in solving it.

(b) For calculating correctly by the correct principle.

A few of the problems are given here to illustrate the tests:

1. A girl having ¾-yard of ribbon bought ⅛-yard more. What part of a yard had she then?

Principle value2
Answer value1

4. If a horse eats ⅜ bushels of oats a day, how long will 6 bushels last?

Principle value3
Answer value2

8. My telephone bill is $12.85 a month. At that rate, how much should I pay in 2¾ years?

Principle value2
Answer value2

12. Muslin is to be bought for 12 new curtains, each requiring 2⅞ yards. How much will the muslin cost at 12½ cents a yard?

Principle value3
Answer value3

As will be observed, each problem is marked for both correct principle and correct answer. The problem is given its full score value when the pupil has reasoned correctly and has secured the numerically correct answer. The final score given the pupil on correct reasoning is the sum of all the correct principle values and the complete score on correct answer is found by adding all the correct answer values. The correct answer score is less than the correct principle score, because a problem may be worked in the right way, but may not show the correct answer due to an error in adding, subtracting, multiplying, or dividing. The scores for correct principle and for correct answer made by each pupil are given separately. Sometimes a pupil gets the wrong answer, even though he has followed the right principle or has properly understood how to solve the problem. The median or average score for each grade tested in each type of school is given in Table 48. The standard scores for each grade are also given in this table. By comparing the median or average score with the standard score for that grade one can easily see whether or not the pupils are developing ability to reason out problems and to make correct calculations. In this comparison when it is clearly seen that a grade

in a school is a half-year or a year below where it should be in reasoning achievement as measured by the median scores, the seriousness of the situation is apparent, as a large per cent of the pupils who are thus far behind in the work do not often receive the full benefit of the complete school course as they drop out of school or struggle along under a very great handicap.

TABLE 48—Showing Median Scores in Reasoning Made on Monroe's Standardized Reasoning Test in Arithmetic by Pupils in Grades Six and Seven in the Rural Schools, in LaGrange and Kinston Schools.
Type of SchoolGrade VI Median ScoresGrade VII Median Scores
Correct PrincipleCorrect AnswerCorrect PrincipleCorrect Answer
Rural94128
Town (LaGrange)116117
City (Kinston)15102316
Standard score15.510.220.714.1

The sixth and seventh grades in the Kinston school are divided into two sections—A and B. Section A in each grade is made up of pupils who were promoted at mid-term, and therefore had completed only about three months of this grade work when the tests were given. The median scores in the table above are for the high sections as they had been in the grade since the first of the year. The median scores for the low sections of the sixth and seventh grades are as follows:

Grade VIGrade VII
Correct principle10.511
Correct answer7.510

In the study of Table 48 we find that in the correct principle score and in the correct answer score that the sixth- and seventh-grade pupils in the rural schools fall far below the standard, and again in comparison with the scores of the same grades in a school within the same county, the Kinston city school, the rural schools do not measure up at all favorably. The median score in the sixth grade in the rural schools is 9 for correct principle, and for the Kinston school it is 15. The median score in the sixth grade in the rural schools for correct answer is 4, and for the Kinston school it is 10. Again, in comparing the median scores of the seventh grade in rural schools with the seventh-grade scores in Kinston school, in both correct principle and correct answer, it will be seen that there is a very wide difference in the power or ability to reason out problems as shown by the scores in this test. Attention is called to the fact that the median scores for the seventh grade in the rural schools, in both correct principle and correct answer, is far below the median scores for the sixth grade.

The scores made by rural schools of every type on the tests in the fundamental processes in arithmetic are more satisfactory than the scores made on the tests for reasoning ability in these same schools. This phase of the work apparently has been neglected in these schools, and it is clear that the pupils are not prepared as they leave the elementary grades to meet the practical tests which upper-grade children are certain to meet in daily experiences.





In the State Outline Course of Study provision is made for beginning the development of reasoning ability in the primary grades, and this phase of teaching arithmetic is emphasized throughout the course for the elementary grades. When the above facts are studied it is evident that the vital points in the course of study are overlooked in the daily classroom procedure, and the low scores in reasoning ability are due probably to the quality of teaching which has been given. Carefully planned definite procedure in arithmetic is absolutely essential to the development of habits of good thinking.

When a number fact is taught there should be practice in applying these facts to the solution of problems common in daily experiences following the best method of procedure. Thinking out the steps in solving a problem is excellent training for the development of reasoning ability. Learning number facts, the application of the facts to the solution of a problem by thinking out the steps to follow and then checking up or verifying the calculations as well as the procedure followed is the whole basis for arithmetic teaching.

Not only is it necessary to drill and make automatic the necessary number facts in calculation, but there should be a great deal of practice in reading problems and interpreting them before trying to solve them. The right method of procedure, the rule or principle to follow and the habit of checking up are all important factors in reaching the standard scores in the different grades.

Whenever low scores are the results of the tests, it is proof that one or more of the principles outlined here have been omitted from the class instruction. Pupils making low scores in the fundamental operations will be handicapped in reasoning out problems; pupils who do not understand the problems read cannot follow the correct procedure in solving the problem, and pupils who do not have the habit of thinking out the steps to follow in the solution of the problem and the habit of verification cannot reach a high standard in reasoning ability.

In the reasoning test the Kinston schools uniformly score highest, the LaGrange schools fall below standard in reasoning ability, and the rural schools are in all cases the weakest of all.

4. Summarizing Statement. More time was given to the work of testing the ability of pupils to work arithmetic than was given to finding the achievement in any other subject tested. Over one hour of the testing program was given to the tests in arithmetic; therefore, it is reasonable to expect the results to be dependable in rating the pupils’ present achievement in this subject.

The pupils completing the eighth grade in an eight-grade elementary school are expected to make the median score of 65 on the Woody Arithmetic Tests. Since the pupils in the seven-grade elementary system cover about the same amount of work as that required in the eight-grade elementary school throughout the country, they should also reach the standard score of 65.

The standard score for grade seven in an eight-grade elementary system is 61. The median scores for the seventh grade in the different types of schools are as follows: One-teacher 44; two-teacher 46; three-teacher 44; more than three-teacher 41; LaGrange 49; Kinston 54. In no instance is the median score sufficient to justify the promotion of the pupils on the basis of having mastered the fundamentals of arithmetic. In brief, the seventh-grade pupils as a whole group in these schools are not prepared to discontinue the study of arithmetic and take up high school mathematics. The scores indicate that the foundation work in arithmetic in the elementary grades is not as thorough as it should be.

There are individual pupils in the various grades tested whose score was far above the standard, but since we are dealing with the median or average score it is evident that there were an equal number of pupils making a score below the standard.

The results from the reasoning tests are even more discouraging as concerns the situation in the rural schools.

The standard score for the sixth grade in schools throughout the country is: For correct principle, that is, how to work the problem, 15.5. For the schools tested the results are as follows: rural schools 9; LaGrange 11; Kinston 15. The standard score for correct answer for the problems for the same grade is 10.2. Kinston scored 10, LaGrange 6, and the sixth grades in the rural schools 4.

Again, in the seventh grade, the last year of the elementary school, the scores are far below what they should be. The standard score is 20.7 for correct principle and 14.1 for correct answer. The median score for the rural schools is 12 on correct principle, and 8 on correct answer. Both scores are below the standard score for the sixth grade.

The work of the rural schools is less efficient than that of the Kinston school and standard schools throughout the country, and according to the median scores for the grades, the work in the main is very unsatisfactory and cannot be considered even fairly creditable.





CHAPTER VIII
ARE THE PUPILS OF THE ELEMENTARY GRADES OF
THE RURAL SCHOOLS OF LENOIR COUNTY MAKING
PROGRESS IN READING SPELLING AND ARITHMETIC
ACCORDING TO THEIR ABILITY?

1. MEASURING PUPIL ABILITY AND SHOWING ITS RELATION TO ACCOMPLISHMENT.

2. GRADATION AND CLASSIFICATION AS FACTORS IN SCHOOL PROGRESS.

3. SUMMARY.

(1) Measuring Pupil Ability and Showing its Relation to Accomplishment. In the chapter on Educational Achievement we have attempted to answer the question of how well the pupils of the elementary grades in the rural schools of Lenoir County are reading, spelling and working arithmetic, and whether or not they are accomplishing as much as the average pupil in the same grade in good schools throughout the country. By the use of standardized tests in these subjects we have presented in terms of average grade or median scores the achievement of the pupils at the time the tests were given and by comparing these average grade or median scores with the test norms or standard scores which are made by average pupils in good schools throughout the country, we have shown whether or not these pupils read, spell and work arithmetic as well as the average pupils in the same grades in good schools.

From this experience in measuring the educational achievement of pupils and comparing results with standard scores, another problem has arisen for which a solution is attempted. The question is whether or not the individual pupil's actual achievement and progress is as great as it might be; that is, whether or not the pupil is working up to his maximum capacity. It is one thing to judge the response which a pupil makes when placed in a certain situation by comparison with certain grade scores, or standards, and quite another thing to regard as satisfactory the results of his work when his general ability is taken into consideration. In determining whether or not pupils achieve results up to their capacity, it is necessary to know whether or not they bring their whole equipment to bear in solving the problem which confronts them. For example, if the standard median or average score in reading for grade four is 41.8, and John makes a score of 39, the question arises as to whether this score of 39 is all that may be expected of him. It may be that John is not average in general ability, or that his capacity for learning is such that a score of 39 on reading in this grade at this time is satisfactory. On the other hand, if John's capacity for learning is far above the average, then he is not accomplishing what he is able to do, and his achievement in reading as measured by a score of 39 is not satisfactory, because he is not making normal progress. The purpose of this chapter is to show whether or not the pupils of the elementary grades in the rural schools of Lenoir County are accomplishing all that they are able to do in reading, spelling, and arithmetic.

The results of the achievement tests were presented with little or no reference to the abilities of pupils; therefore, in order to solve the problem as stated above, it was necessary to supplement the information yielded by these tests. This was done by giving a *group test of general capacity in grades four to seven inclusive. This test contains five exercises, as follows: arithmetical

* The National Intelligence Test. Scale A, Form I.

problems; sentence completion; checking attributes possessed by a given word; synonym—antonym; copying numbers corresponding to given symbols from a key. This arrangement of five tests on a scale is a complete unit for testing. It may be inferred that these several examinations supplement each other by measuring to the same degree different abilities. A combination of the scores from all of these tests would seem to be a more complete measure of an individual than any one of them alone would be. This test is not considered a perfect measure of ability either native or acquired, but it adds materially to information yielded by the achievement tests. It is useful in the diagnosis of the general ability of the individual or group of pupils and will help to discover with a fair measure of scientific accuracy the extent to which pupils have profited by the opportunities afforded them and to predict with reasonable surety how they will progress if better opportunities are set before them.

This test was given at the same time that the educational tests were given. All pupils in the grades four to seven in the forty-two schools, in LaGrange and Kinston schools, a total of 1,287 pupils, were given the test. Table 50 shows the average grade scores made on the test by the pupils of these schools and the average grade or median scores made by pupils in the same grade in good schools throughout the country.

TABLE 50—Showing the Average Grade Scores Made on the General Test.
Type of SchoolGrades
IVVVIVIIVIII
Rural school45.5648594
Town (LaGrange)558395102
City (Kinston)6684102113
Average score in good schools from the country at large7088106120132

In studying the different types of schools, the fact that a pupil's score on the general test is to a certain extent the result of his training and experience, and not a measure of his native ability or original capacity only, must be considered. In comparing the grade scores made by the pupils in the different types of schools (rural, town, and city), it must be borne in mind that the low scores by the pupils of the rural schools may be attributed, in a degree, to lack of opportunity for the development of original powers. The short school term, irregular attendance, the curriculum, the lack of equipment, the untrained teacher, misgrouping of pupils, all may influence the situation to a certain extent. A study of the scores from this viewpoint will result in the conclusion that the pupils of the rural schools do not have an equal opportunity for the development of their natural endowments with the boys and girls in good schools in their own county and in the country at large.

The scores made on the general test were translated into mental ages by means of a mental age table constructed from the age norms available for the test used. Changing the scores into terms of mental ages insures a better understanding of the meaning of the scores. From the mental-age table we read the mental ages of the individual pupils which correspond to the scores made on the test. While this may not be, accurately speaking, the child's true mental age, it is the mental age which corresponds to his score obtained





on the group test given under the best possible conditions. Table 51 gives the average mental ages (M.A.) of all the pupils of grades four to seven inclusive in the different types of schools.

TABLE 51—Showing the Average Mental Ages (M.A.) for Pupils of Grades Four to Seven Inclusive in the Different Types of Schools.
Type of SchoolGrades
IVVVIVII
Rural (42 schools)108120136142
Town (LaGrange)114132143148
City (Kinston)120134148157
Estimated mental ages for average pupils in good schools over the country at large*123137150163

* According to scores made on the general test.

The complete tabulation sheet for each pupil in each grade in each type of school was made. This shows the mental ages of the individual pupils as determined by translating the test scores into mental ages. A sample is given here:

Pupil's NameTest ScoreMental Age
B. W.38104
D. K.71123
G. R.31100

The table may be read as follows: Pupil No. 1, B. W., made a score of 38 on the test, which converted gives his mental age as 104 months, or eight years and eight months. It is essential to know the mental ability of pupils, and when expressed in terms of mental ages it can be more clearly understood. Simply to know that a pupil makes a score of 38 on the test does not mean as much to the average person as to know that he has made a score equal to that expected of a pupil eight years and eight months old. His mental age of 104 months means that he has the general mental ability which is possessed by the average child whose chronological age is 104 months.

After the mental age of the pupil is determined, his scores on reading, spelling and arithmetic should be converted into comparable terms with mental age. To do this a composite educational score was made up of the reading score, plus the arithmetic score plus one-half the spelling score. This educational score was converted into educational age by means of an educational age table made up from the norms for the tests used in these subjects.

A sample from one of the tabulation sheets is given:

PupilReading ScoreArithmetic ScoreSpelling ScoreEducational ScoreEducational Age
B. W.3120553105
D. K.37192769116
G. R.3029360110

This table may be read as follows: Pupil B. W. makes an educational score of 53, which explained, means that he has attained a standard in reading, arithmetic and spelling equal to that of a pupil 105 months or eight years and nine months old.

Now in order to find out whether or not the pupil is working up to his maximum capacity it is necessary to compare his mental age with his educational age. A study of the sample tabulation sheet given here will aid in understanding this procedure.

PupilMental AgeEducational AgeAccomplishment Quotient
B. W.104105100
D. K.12311694
G. R.100110110

The first pupil, B.W., has a mental age of 104 and an educational age of 105. This shows that he has accomplished about what is expected of him, and that his educational achievement is about normal when compared with his mental ability. His accomplishment quotient (A.Q.) is determined by dividing his educational age by his mental age, and shows the relation of accomplishment to ability. This quotient yields a fair measure of the extent to which a pupil has progressed in proportion to his ability to make progress. If the quotient is 100 it is considered normal, and means that the pupil is working up to his capacity and is doing what is reasonably expected of him. If the quotient is below 100, the pupil is not accomplishing all that he is able to do. The second pupil, D. K., has a mental age of 123 and an educational age of 116. His accomplishment quotient of 94 is far below what should reasonably be expected of him. The third pupil is applying his mental powers to the mastery of reading, spelling and arithmetic beyond the degree expected of a pupil of average ability. The most intelligent pupil in the group, as measured by the test, is actually making the poorest school record.

An examination of the accomplishment quotients of the pupils of the rural schools shows that 27 of the 99 pupils tested in the one-teacher schools were failing to work up to their full capacity, while 30 of the 178 pupils in the three-teacher schools fell below what was expected of them in school accomplishment. Again, it was found that 4 of the 9 pupils tested in a one-teacher school failed to show an accomplishment quotient of 100 (which is considered normal), and in still another school of the same type 5 of the 12 pupils tested were not accomplishing what they had the ability to do. In three two-teacher schools the results showed the following proportion in the number of pupils failing to do the work which they were able to do: in one school, 10 of the 13 pupils tested; in another 12 out of 21, and in another school 5 of the 10 pupils tested failed to make an accomplishment quotient of 100. The three-teacher schools, with one exception, showed the largest percentage of pupils working up to their maximum capacity. The best situation in this regard was found at Woodington, a three-teacher school, where one pupil only of a group of 21 failed to make progress according to his ability. The reports from the other three-teacher schools is fairly satisfactory in this respect, with the exception of the Sharon school, where 8 of the 19 pupils tested were failing to make the most of their opportunity. Combining the reports of the test results from the rural schools of all types, it was found that about thirty per cent of the pupils were failing to do capacity work; and, therefore, according to this measure they were not living up to the maximum of their possibilities, and were wasting their time in school under the present organization. These pupils were not using all of their powers toward the mastery of the important school subjects of reading, spelling and arithmetic. The tests show that they have the ability to accomplish more—to attain higher standards in these subjects. When one pupil in every group of three or four, or twenty-five or thirty out of every one hundred are not reading, spelling and working arithmetic according to their ability, such a condition should warrant an investigation into the efficiency of the school and justify suggestions for remedial measures.





While the percentage of pupils failing to work up to their maximum capacity in the schools as a whole does not seem large, yet the seriousness of the situation cannot be appreciated unless there is consideration for the rights of every child enrolled in the schools—the right to a full development of his natural powers and an equal opportunity with every other child.

In the study of the pupil's actual achievement in relation to his ability, it should be borne in mind that his achievement in reading, spelling and arithmetic only was considered. Reference to Chapter III of this bulletin will show that practically all of the pupil's school experience has been in an attempt to master these three subjects. With such a narrow and limited curriculum a pupil may have ample opportunity to apply his powers to the attainment of as high a standard as is possible for him to reach in these subjects, yet at the same time his development is narrow and limited, since he does not have the opportunity of training in other important school subjects. From this viewpoint it is easier to understand why a large per cent of the pupils are accomplishing what they have the ability to do in these three subjects.

However, when pupils of a given class or a whole school even are not advancing according to their ability, an investigation into the causes of the condition leads to a consideration of the question of proper graduation and classification of pupils.

(2) Gradation and Classification as Factors in School Progress. The tabulation sheets from each school show lack of proper gradation and classification of a majority of the pupils in the elementary grades in the system. Schools are classified by grades for the purpose of placing the children into effective working groups. The six-year-old beginner is placed in the first grade. When he has accomplished the aims of first-grade instruction and reasonably ready to meet the demands of the next grade he is promoted. If a pupil is not accomplishing all that he might if he were placed in another grade, then he is not well classified. When all the pupils of one grade are working up to their full capacity and accomplishing satisfactory results, then the classification may be considered as effective and the class rated as a good working group.

A most undesirable situation was revealed by measuring the abilities and achievements of the pupils in the rural schools of the Lenoir County system. The results of the tests show a misgrouping of sixty-six and two-thirds per cent, or two-thirds of all the pupils enrolled in the different grades (4-7). Sixty per cent of the pupils enrolled were placed from one to three grades beyond where they should be if they were properly classified according to their ability to learn and their actual achievement in the important school subjects of reading, spelling and arithmetic. Six per cent of the pupils had already attained grade standards in these subjects from one to three grades above their classification in school. Only one-third of the total enrollment were placed in grades where they could do their best work and make the greatest progress during the year so far as they were individually concerned. However, when two-thirds of a class are either above or below the grade standard, it is difficult for those placed in proper grades to profit as much as they should by classroom experiences. The grading or distribution of pupils by grades was found to be generally very defective and in most instances may be described as chaotic. For example, pupils in some fourth-grade classes ranged in ability and achievement from second to sixth grade, and pupils classified as seventh grade had actually achieved fourth-grade standards only.

In some of the rural schools of the smaller type where there are a few pupils only in some of the grades or classes (the number ranges from one to five pupils in most instances), the matter of improper gradation is not so serious with this few to deal with in each class for the reason that individual

instruction may be followed. This accounts for the large per cent of the total number of pupils making progress according to their ability even in the situation where there is such a large number of pupils not placed in the grades according to their achievement in school subjects and ability to progress through the grades. With the individual instruction and the limited number of subjects studied the matter of classification may not be so important.

The test scores confirm the fact that the pupils of all the rural schools are very poorly classified since the scores spread over a wide range. The range in a single grade being from a score of 36 to a score of 108 on the general test.

Time spent in school, school accomplishment, and chronological age are the most important factors entering into the common practice as regards school classification. The results of the tests prove the inadequacy of these methods of classifying children in school. No single factor should be regarded as a safe basis in creating the effective working group that is the object of all gradation, but a careful consideration of all important basic and modifying factors should precede the placing of pupils in a system. Proper gradation and classification of pupils should be based primarily upon ability to progress, what they have accomplished in important school subjects, and the teacher's common-sense estimate of the individual pupil (a ranking based upon a composite estimate of habits, skills, and attitudes).

A suggested classification based upon these principles is given for each pupil in grades four to seven inclusive in the rural schools. By this plan the classification of the pupils is made upon the careful consideration of important basic factors which affect pupil accomplishment and school progress.

The sample tabulation sheet below gives the detailed plan for this procedure:

......................... SCHOOL—GRADE IV
1234567891011
NameAgeNational Intelligence Test ScoreMental AgeEducational ScoreEducational AgePedagogical RankPedagogical AgePromotion AgeClassificationAccomplishment Quotient
E. B.16812894499696952.3111
M. B.140551135210421101093.492
C. D.143711236911611161184.194
R. G.168311006011041041055.1110
D. K.15328984096599982.598
B. W.169381043116531051053.1100

An explanation of the items of this table which have to do with the proposed classification of the pupils follows: Item 7 of this sample grade from the tabulation sheets from one school shows the pedagogical rank or teacher's estimate of the individual pupils. Number one (1) under column seven (7) is the pupil who most deserves promotion according to the teacher's estimate. Number two (2) next, and so on, to number six (6), the pupil of that grade who least deserves promotion. To give the teacher's estimate due credit in this scheme of classification, the educational age is translated into pedagogical age according to the pedagogical ranking or estimate of the teacher. The basis for promotion or determining class position is the average of the pupil's mental age, his educational age, and his pedagogical age. In the sample tabulation sheet, E. B. has a mental age of 89 months, an educational age of 99 months, and his pedagogical age is 96 months. Averaging these figures gives his promotion age as 95 months. By means of a promotion age table,





devised from the norms for the National Intelligence Test, E. B., with a promotion age of 95 months, is classified as a second-grade pupil, or, rather, three-tenths (.3) beyond the standard for the second grade at the beginning of the year, yet he was classified as a fourth-grade pupil and attempting to profit by the use of the texts for the fourth grade.

A further study of the sample tabulation sheet shows the range of pupil position in this class (Grade IV), the lowest classified as 2.3 grade and the highest as 4.1 grade, a range of one year and eight months. The normal grade position for the pupils of a well-graded and effectively classified fourth grade would be 4.6 at the time of the year the tests were given.

The results of the test show a great deal of overlapping upward and downward in the grades from four to seven. Figure No. 1 shows the classification of 19 pupils in grades four to seven in one of the best two-teacher schools of the county. Note the large per cent of overlapping in each grade. This is typical of the conditions in regard to gradation and classification in all of the forty-two rural schools.

FIGURE NO. 1

.........................SCHOOL—GRADES IV TO VII

GRADE IV
PupilClassificationAccomplishment Quotient
14.5116
24.295
33.2108
44.7112
54.2109
64.2100

Normal grade classification for the month the tests were given, 4.6.

GRADE V
PupilClassificationAccomplishment Quotient
14.2100
26.090
35.493
44.1112
55.044
65.4102

Normal grade classification for the month the tests were given, 5.6.

GRADE VI
PupilClassificationAccomplishment Quotient
14.9111
25.590

Normal grade classification for the month the tests were given, 6.6.

GRADE VII
PupilClassificationAccomplishment Quotient
15.6103
25.4110
35.2112
45.7101
57.187

Normal grade classification for the month the tests were given, 7.6.

The figures in the above table prove the statement that the schools are not properly graded and classified, as there seems to have been little or no attempt to group together pupils of equal educational status. In the fifth grade, for instance, there are pupils of fourth-, fifth-, and sixth-grade abilities. The two pupils grouped as six-graders have attained fourth- and fifth-grade standards only, and there is more than a half-year's difference in their achievements. In the seventh-grade group, four of the five are of fifth-grade ability, and only one pupil has even reached seventh-grade standards, and this one is one-half year behind where the grade should be at the time the tests were given.

In the third column of Figure No. 1 is given the accomplishment quotient of these same pupils who are so poorly classified. Six of the nineteen pupils are not accomplishing what they have the ability to do, and it is reasonable to infer that the pupils accomplishing results according to their ability have done so because of individual instruction, a narrow curriculum, or good teaching. It is evident that the system of gradation in this school has not helped the pupils to reach high standards. The wide variation of ability and achievement on the part of individual pupils or groups of pupils within a class or grade present great instructional difficulties to the teacher as well as to almost wholly block further progress on the part of the pupils who are so classified. The schools cannot be credited with the original capacities of the pupils, but they are responsible for their attainment and progress while attending the school. Proper gradation and classification is a part of the responsibility of the school.

The following table shows the average classification for each grade in the different types of schools:

TABLE 52—Showing Average Classification for Each Grade in Different Types of Schools.
Type of SchoolGrades
IVVVIVII
Rural schools3.54.65.66
Town (LaGrange)4.25.76.26.3
City (Kinston)4.45.46.57.2
Normal grade at the time the test were given4.65.66.67.6

The average grade location of pupils in the LaGrange and Kinston schools is given for purposes of comparison. This table shows that on the average the classification in the rural schools is from one to one and a half years too high for the pupils’ ability and achievement. To further block progress, these pupils were using the texts in all subjects for the grade above, where they should normally be placed.

It is clear from these figures that those who have advanced in the present school program have done so on genuine capacity to do the work. The evidence shows that they have advanced as fast as the school program would allow, yet they have not attained the grade standards which their abilities would warrant.

In view of these facts concerning the gradation and classification of the pupils in these schools, is it any wonder that more than twenty-five per cent of the pupils are not making the progress that they have the ability to make even if improper classification should be only one of the contributing causes to this condition?





What is to be done in a situation like this? What changes must be brought about in order that each child in the rural schools may make the most of the time spent in school and his achievement and school progress be all that may reasonably be expected of him.

There are two fundamental objectives in the plan as followed in the proposed classification of pupils in the rural schools: (1) to put together those of equal educational status, and (2) to put together those who will progress at equal rate. With a regrouping of pupils on this basis they will have greater opportunity to work up to their maximum capacity.

The pupils as a group are as able as we have any right to expect them to be, but the results of the investigation indicate that something must be done in the organization of the schools and in the adjustment of the instruction to the abilities of the pupils.

In the proposed plan of consolidation for Lenoir County the pupils of the smaller type schools are to be brought together in one central school. With the larger number of pupils there will be greater opportunity to group together pupils who have attained more nearly the same standards, and who have the ability to progress at a more equal rate. With a teacher for each grade, an eight months school term, improved equipment and adequate supervision of the elementary grades the proper gradation and classification of school children will become a reality, and under such conditions a greater per cent of the pupils will achieve grade standards according to their ability.

(3) Summary. The results of the tests prove that the schools are not securing satisfactory returns in terms of pupil ability since more than thirty per cent of the pupils are not accomplishing what they are able to do in reading, spelling and arithmetic. From the facts presented, it is evident that the chief causes of this condition are lack of proper gradation and classification and a system of promotions which does not regard the actual mental and educational status of the pupils concerned.

In so far as the test data was reliable, the normal grade location for each pupil was determined by a classification based upon his ability, his achievement, and the teacher's rating of his work in general. The results showed a misgrouping of two-thirds of the pupils tested and a very great overlapping in the grades.

A reorganization of the grades or a grouping of pupils according to ability and achievement within the grades would help to remove some of the obstacles in the way of effective instruction, and would at the same time give the pupils a better opportunity to progress according to their abilities. However, the pupils in the smaller type rural schools can never obtain standards equal to those reached by pupils in good schools everywhere because of the disadvantages and handicaps attendant upon these institutions. The larger school unit offers advantages necessary to the more complete development of the school child.

Investigations properly conducted bring to light many strong points as well as the weaknesses in a school system. In this report an attempt is made to reveal conditions as they actually are so that the plans for the future may be based upon accurate knowledge of the needs of the situation.

CHAPTER IX
HOW MUCH EDUCATION ARE THE PUPILS IN THE RURAL
SCHOOLS ACTUALLY GETTING UNDER THE PRESENT
PLAN?
I. UP TO WHAT AGE ARE THE PUPILS IN THE RURAL SCHOOLS
REMAINING IN SCHOOL?

TABLE 53—Showing Relative Number and Percentage of Pupils of Various Ages in Each Type of Rural School.
AgeOne-teacherTwo-teacherThree-teacherFour-teacherPink Hill
NumberPer CentNumberPer CentNumberPer CentNumberPer CentNumberPer Cent
52.4151.2101.8102.5
65110.21169.9529.11712.2276.9
755111149.86110.7128.6256.4
85110.31159.9529.11410358.9
95711.41099.3569.8107.2328.1
105110.212310.45910.31712.24310.9
1150101018.6519139.4287.6
12469.21169.95710107.2348.7
13397.8917.9417.11611.5317.9
14367.2786.6427.3118297.4
15214.2867.4315.432.2235.8
16214.2574.9274.785.8225.6
1792262.2183.221.4256.4
183.6161.371.264.3102.6
194.84.35.9102.6
202.45.42.471.7
21
Totals4991,172571139391

In the above table, as well as in the tables that follow, only 17 of the 19 two-teacher schools are included. Their inclusion would not affect very materially the percentages included and the deductions therefrom.

(1) From the foregoing table it will be seen that the pupils of the rural schools of the county are remaining in school fairly well to fourteen years of age, which marks the close of the compulsory school attendance period. But from the fourteenth to the sixteenth year the one-teacher schools lose 3 per cent of their entire enrollment, the two-teacher 1.7 per cent, the three-teacher 2.6 per cent, the four-teacher 2.2 per cent, the Pink Hill consolidated school 1.8 per cent.

(2) From this table it will also be seen that in holding pupils after reaching sixteen years of age, the one-teacher school is the laggard in the race. They are holding only about 8 per cent of their total enrollment of sixteen





years or age and above. The two-teacher schools are holding more than 9 per cent, the three-teacher schools 10.5 per cent, the four-teacher school 11.5 per cent, while the Pink Hill school has 19 per cent of its total, sixteen years of age and above.

From the above facts it is clear that the percentage of older rural pupils remaining in school increases as the school increases in number of teachers and in number of grades of work provided.

It is not difficult to understand why the Pink Hill consolidated school, with its ten teachers, four years of high school instruction, eight months school term, and the public transportation of pupils has 19 per cent of the entire enrollment sixteen years of age and above. Doubtless many of these older pupils had dropped out of their little local one-teacher schools for reasons previously suggested, but when this consolidated school was established, and they had the opportunity of going to a school with enough trained teachers to give then the instruction they felt they needed, they returned to school and are preparing themselves for better citizenship in their communities.

Where the little one-teacher school is driving these older boys and girls back into the community to grow up into inefficient citizens, the consolidated school with its large number of well trained teachers and its high school advantages is bringing them back into school and preparing them for efficient citizenship in the community.

II. UP THROUGH WHAT GRADE ARE THE PUPILS IN THE RURAL
SCHOOLS REMAINING IN SCHOOL?

TABLE 54—Showing—
GradeOne-teacherTwo-teacherThree-teacherFour-teacherPink Hill
NumberPer CentNumberPer CentNumberPer CentNumberPer CentNumberPer Cent
115931.933528.617630.93424.55814.8
27815.716013.67212.6128.66416.4
36613.317014.56411.21410.15313.6
45711.415413.17613.33827.3348.7
57214.513111.2518.9128.64210.7
6377.41038.8518.996.5266.7
7305.8837427.4107.24912.5
8232162.8103.64210.7
9141.2193.353.6133.3
104.753.682.1
112.5
Totals4991,172571139391

(1) From the above table it will be seen that in the fifteen one-teacher schools 31.9 per cent of the total enrollment is in the first grade; 60.9 in the first three grades, and 86.8 per cent in the first five grades, and that 100 per cent, or the entire enrollment, is in the first seven grades. This means that not one of the 499 white children enrolled in the fifteen one-teacher schools is receiving any high school instruction. According to the best American authorities, if the progress of these pupils were uninterrupted and were given a fair chance for high school instruction, only about 64 per cent, instead of 100 per cent, would be within the first seven grades.

(2) In the Pink Hill consolidated school only about 15 per cent are in the first grade, 44.8 per cent in the first three grades, 64 per cent in the first five grades, 83.4 per cent within the first seven grades, while 16.6 per cent are doing high school work. And here, according to recognized American authority, if the progress of the pupils in the school were complete, 36 per cent of all the pupils instead of 16.6 per cent would be in high school. This school is now in the second year of its operation, and when it shall have had more time in which to get the work properly organized, the pupils properly graded and classified, it is quite possible that the per cent of its total enrollment in high school will rise considerably above 16.6 per cent.

(3) Of the 2,772 pupils enrolled in all the white rural schools of the county only 601 or 21.7 per cent are above the fifth grade. This means that 78 per cent of the total rural school enrollment is within the first five grades. According to recognized authority, if the progress of the pupils through the grades were uninterrupted, only about 45 per cent instead of 78 per cent should be within these five grades.

(4) Of the white rural school enrollment of 2,772 pupils, only 161 or 5.8 per cent are above the seventh grade, with two pupils only out of this entire enrollment in the eleventh grade, the last year of the high school. According to recognized authority, if the progress of the pupils were normal and uninterrupted, 36 per cent instead of 5.8 per cent should be enrolled in the high school. This means that of this enrollment of 2,772 in the rural schools of the county, approximately 997 of them, instead of 161, would be in high school. But it must be clearly recognized that the remedy for this rather pressing situation does not lie in extending high school instruction to the one-, two-, three- and four-teacher schools. Even seven well trained and experienced teachers should neither be required nor expected to teach more than the seven grades of the elementary schools. For three teachers to teach seven grades means that each teacher will have to teach more than two grades, and this is more than twice the number of grades of work that any one teacher in our best rural or city schools has to teach. To put high school instruction in addition to the seven grades of elementary instruction in these one-, two-, three- and four-teacher schools means a manifest injustice to the large number of children in the primary grades who are dependent upon the time and attention of the teacher, and it clearly means an injustice to the teacher in requiring her to attempt more than she can do with any real degree of efficiency.

With 78 per cent of the white pupils enrolled in these rural schools within the first five grades, with only 5.8 per cent enrolled above the seventh grade, with two pupils only enrolled in the eleventh grade, the question quite naturally arises, Are the parents of the children, the communities and the county at large satisfied with this small amount of education and training for the duties of citizenship in this modern and rapidly progressing age?

This 78 per cent of the white rural school enrollment, whose education and training for their life work and for citizenship is not above the fifth grade, will prove a weighty factor twenty or thirty years from now in determining the material, civic and moral values of these rural communities as well as the county as a whole.





III. ARE THE PUPILS IN THE RURAL SCHOOLS RECEIVING AS
MUCH EDUCATION AS ARE THE PUPILS IN THE LAGRANGE AND
KINSTON SCHOOLS?

TABLE 55—Showing—
GradeRural SchoolsLaGrangeKinston
NumberPer CentNumberPer CentNumberPer Cent
176227.55714.126116.1
238613.94110.123614.6
336713.24611.318011.1
435913.05413.317510.8
530811.14210.416810.3
62268.24611.41388.5
72037.34110.11187.3
8913.3338.11398.6
9511.9256.21066.5
1017.6164593.6
112.0111422.6
Totals2,7724051,617

(1) From the above table it will be seen that while 27.5 per cent of the entire rural school enrollment is in the first grade, only 14.1 per cent of the LaGrange enrollment and 16.1 per cent of the Kinston enrollment is in the first grade. This noticeable difference in the percentage of children enrolled in the first grade in town and county is no doubt in some measure not only due to better methods of teaching in the town, but also better school organization, better gradation and classification of children, closer supervision, as well as a longer school term, thereby enabling children to make a grade each school term.

(2) While 54.6 per cent of the rural pupils are within the first three grades, only 41.8 per cent of the Kinston enrollment, and only 35.5 per cent of the LaGrange enrollment are within the first three grades.

(3) While 78 per cent of the rural school enrollment is within the first five grades, only 63 per cent of the Kinston enrollment and 59.5 per cent of the LaGrange enrollment is within the first five grades.

(4) In the rural schools of the county 94.2 per cent of the entire enrollment is within the first seven grades, in the LaGrange schools only 76.4 per cent, and in the Kinston school only 71.3 per cent.

(5) While only 5.8 per cent of the total rural enrollment is in high school, 19 per cent of the LaGrange enrollment, and 21 per cent of the Kinston school is doing high school work.

With the education and equipment for life of approximately eight out of every ten children enrolled in the rural schools confined within the limits of a fifth grade education, as against approximately only six out of every ten children enrolled in Kinston and LaGrange; with the education and equipment of approximately nine out of every ten children enrolled in the rural schools confined within the bounds of a seventh grade education as against only seven out of every ten children enrolled in Kinston and LaGrange confined within such narrow bounds; with approximately only five out of every one hundred children enrolled in the rural schools going beyond the seventh grade, against approximately twenty out of every one hundred children enrolled in Kinston and LaGrange schools going on into high school work; with only two pupils out of the entire rural school enrollment of 2,772 pupils

in the eleventh grade—in the face of these facts what rational hope can the farmers of the county entertain that their children are having anything like equality of opportunity with the children in Kinston and LaGrange in preparing themselves for the many duties of citizenship in this modern age.

IV. ARE AS MANY PUPILS IN THE RURAL SCHOOLS COMPLETING
THE SEVENTH GRADE AS SHOULD?

TABLE 56—Showing—
Total First Grade EnrollmentTotal Seventh Grade EnrollmentNumber Completing Seventh GradePer Cent of First Grade Enrollment in Seventh GradePer Cent of Seventh Grade Enrollment Completing Seventh GradePer Cent of First Grade Enrollment Completing Seventh GradeAverage Age of Pupils Completing Seventh Grade
One-teacher15930318.87101.915 yrs., 4 mos.
Two-teacher33594232824.46.814 yrs., 6 mos.
Three-teacher176421823.842.710.213 yrs., 7 mos.
Four-teacher
Pink Hill58551694.82927.613 yrs.

Of course it is not contended here that we can determine the exact proportion of pupils reaching the seventh grade by comparing the present seventhgrade enrollment with the present first-grade enrollment. It is evident that the present seventh-grade enrollment does not accurately represent the number of pupils entering the first grade seven years ago, nor even the number of pupils entering the first grade this year, owing to the fact that the first grade for this year is made up not only of children entering school for the first time, but of children who were not promoted out of the first grade last year. On the other hand the present seventh grade is made up not only of pupils entering the first grade seven years ago, but of pupils also who leave the seventh grade of other schools. But in considering all the rural schools of the county in one group or system, this increase in the number of the present seventh grade from other schools is hardly noticeable.

But it will no doubt be admitted that the figures in the above table indicate rather definitely the relatively small per cent of pupils who remain in school from the first grade to the completion of the seventh grade.

(1) With the above explanation in mind, it will be seen from the foregoing table that the one-teacher schools of the county keep through to the seventh grade approximately 19 per cent of their first grade enrollment, or 10.8 per cent less than the two-teacher schools, 5 per cent less than the three-teacher schools, and 75 per cent less than the Pink Hill consolidated school. Inasmuch, however, as the Pink Hill consolidated school has been only recently established, it is not fair to include it in this particular count.

(2) In the one-teacher schools only ten pupils out of every one hundred enrolled in the seventh grade complete the work, while in the Pink Hill consolidated school twenty-nine pupils out of every one hundred enrolled complete the work of this grade. This would seem to suggest that a seventhgrade pupil in the Pink Hill consolidated school has about three chances to one over the seventh-grade pupil in the one-teacher school for graduating from the seventh grade.

(3) In the one-teacher schools only 1.9 per cent of the first-grade enrollment is completing the work of the seventh grade; in the two-teacher schools 6.8 per cent, and in the three-teacher schools 10.2 per cent.





(4) In the one-teacher schools of the county the average age of pupils completing the seventh grade is fifteen years and four months, or 10 months older than the pupils completing the seventh grade in the two-teacher school, twenty-one months, approximately two years older than the pupils completing the seventh grade in the three-teacher schools, and 28 months—more than two years older than the pupils completing the seventh grade in the Pink Hill consolidated school.

From the foregoing facts it is clear that when measured by their success in keeping pupils from the first grade till graduation from the seventh grade; when measured by the percentage of their actual seventh-grade enrollment they are able to graduate from the seventh grade; when measured by the time these schools are taking to graduate these pupils from the seventh grade as indicated in the age of the graduates, it must appear conclusive that on these important points the one-teacher schools stand at the foot of the ladder.

V. PROPORTION OF RURAL, KINSTON AND LAGRANGE PUPILS
COMPLETING THE SEVENTH GRADE

TABLE 57—Showing—
Total First Grade EnrollmentTotal Number in Seventh GradeNumber Completing Seventh GradePer Cent of First Grade Enrollment in Seventh GradePer Cent of First Grade Enrollment Completing Seventh GradePer Cent of Seventh Grade Enrollment Completing Seventh GradeAverage Age of Pupils Completing Seventh Grade
One-teacher159303191.91015 yrs., 4 mos.
Total rural schools7622036026.6829.514 yrs., 2 mos.
LaGrange5741287249.368.313 yrs., 2 mos.
Kinston26114910057386712 yrs.

(1) From the foregoing table it will be observed that while approximately only 19 out of each 100 pupils enrolled in the first grade in the one-teacher schools reach the seventh grade, 72 in the LaGrange and 57 in Kinston reach the seventh grade.

(2) In the one-teacher schools approximately 2 pupils, in the LaGrange school 49 pupils, and in the Kinston school 38 pupils out of each one hundred enrolled in the first grade graduate from the seventh grade. This means in a general way that a first-grade pupil in the LaGrange school has about twenty-five chances to one, and a first-grade pupil in the Kinston school has about twenty chances to one over the first-grade pupil in the one-teacher school in graduating from the seventh grade.

(3) In the one-teacher school approximately 10 seventh-grade pupils out of each one hundred enrolled, in the LaGrange school 68 pupils, and in the Kinston school 67 pupils out of each one hundred enrolled complete the work of this grade. This means in a general way that the pupil who enters the seventh grade either in the LaGrange or Kinston school has approximately seven chances to one over the seventh-grade pupil in the one-teacher school for completing the work of this grade.

(4) In the rural schools of the county as a whole it will be seen that approximately only 27 pupils out of each one hundred enrolled in the first grade reach the seventh grade against 72 from LaGrange and 57 from Kinston. This means that a pupil enrolled in the first grade in LaGrange will

have more than two chances to one over a pupil enrolled in the first grade in any rural school in the county for reaching the seventh grade.

(5) In the rural schools approximately only 8 pupils out of each one hundred enrolled in the first grade complete the work of the seventh grade, against 49 from LaGrange school and 38 from Kinston school. This means that the first-grade pupil in the LaGrange school has more than six chances to one over the first-grade pupil in any rural school in the county for completing the work of the seventh grade and being prepared for high school work.

(6) In the rural schools approximately only 30 out of every one hundred seventh-grade pupils enrolled complete the work of the seventh grade against 68 in LaGrange and 67 in Kinston. And this means that the pupil who is enrolled in the seventh grade either in the LaGrange or Kinston school has more than two chances to one over the seventh-grade pupil in any rural school in the county for completing the seventh-grade and being ready to enter upon high school work.

In the one-teacher schools the average age of those completing the work of the seventh grade is 15 years and 4 months, in the rural schools as a whole 14 years, in LaGrange 13 years and 2 months, and in Kinston 12 years. This means that when a pupil in the one-teacher school is fortunate enough finally to pull through the seventh grade he is two years and two months older than the pupil completing the seventh grade in the LaGrange school, and three years and four months older than the pupil completing the seventh grade in the Kinston school. Hence in comparison with the seventh-grade graduate in the Kinston school this seventh-grade graduate from the one-teacher school has lost three full years in getting ready for high school, for college and for his life work. In addition to this loss of time he is not nearly so well grounded in the subjects studied as his seventh-grade neighbor in Kinston or LaGrange. As an agency for preparing pupils for high school or for the every day duties of life the one-teacher school must seem both expensive and inefficient.

Therefore, it would seem conclusive that in the progress from the first grade until the completion of the seventh grade, getting ready for high school, college and for their life work, the children, whether in the one-teacher schools or in rural schools of the county as a whole, are in a race with the children of Kinston and LaGrange in which the odds are unmistakably against them.

VI. ARE THE PUPILS IN THE RURAL SCHOOLS IN THE GRADE
THEY SHOULD BE FOR THEIR AGE?

TABLE 58—Showing—
GradeOne-teacher Schools—Average AgeTotal Rural Schools—Average AgeKinston Schools—Average AgeLaGrange School—Average AgeNational Standard—Average Age
17.457.1776.5
29.249.288.17.5
310.7310.38.79.38.5
412.1411.149.99.79.5
513.3713.311.241010.5
614.413.712.811.611.5
714.914.713.412.812.5
8015.7141414.5
9015.815.114.515.5
10017.115.814.816.5
1101716.915.7517.5





(1) Since the legal age of school attendance in this State is 6-21 years of age, we assume at least that children entering the first grade at six years of age will pass on into the second grade at seven years of age, pass on into the third grade at eight years of age, and so on through the school course.

(2) From the foregoing table it will be observed that the differences in the average ages of first grade children in the one-teacher school, the rural schools of the county, and in LaGrange and Kinston are very slight. In the one-teacher schools the average age of first-grade pupils is 7.45 years, in the total number of rural schools it is 7.1, in Kinston and LaGrange the average is 7. It will be seen then that all these children start practically on the same line, but as the race proceeds the pupils in the one-teacher schools and in all the rural schools are more and more left behind by the children in Kinston and LaGrange.

(3) In the third grade the average age of the pupils in the one-teacher school is 10.73 years, in LaGrange 8.7 years, and in Kinston 9.3 years, with the National Standard for this grade at 8.5 years. This means that the pupils in the third grade in the one-teacher schools are two years older than the pupils in the same grade in the Kinston school, 1.3 years older than the third-grade pupils in the LaGrange school, and 2.2 years older than the National Standard Age for this grade.

(4) The average age of the seventh grade pupils in the one-teacher school is 14.9 years, in the LaGrange school 12.8 years, in the Kinston school 13.4 years, while the National Standard Age for this grade is 12.5 years. This means that the seventh-grade pupils in the one-teacher school are 1.5 years older than the seventh-grade pupils in the Kinston school, 2.1 years older than the seventh-grade pupils in the LaGrange school, and 2.4 years older than the National Standard Age for this grade. From this table it will be further observed that the seventh-grade pupils in the one-teacher school are even one-tenth of a year older than the tenth-grade or third-year high school pupils in the LaGrange school, and only two-tenths of a year younger than the third-year high school pupils in the Kinston school. These facts seem to indicate very clearly that if the farmer in these one-teacher communities could send their children regularly to a large and efficient school they would be farther advanced at thirteen than they now are at fifteen years of age, and doubtless be far more thorough in the ground gone over.

From the foregoing facts it must appear conclusive that as a time-killer the one-teacher school heads the list. But when we consider all the rural schools of the county as one system, there is a noticeable difference in the average ages of the children grade for grade in these rural schools and in the Kinston and LaGrange schools.

(5) From the table above it will be seen that the average age of the first-grade pupils in all rural schools is 7.1 years, while in the Kinston and the LaGrange schools it is 7 years. Here, too, it will be observed that the average age of the first grade pupils in both town and county is practically the same, and here, too, it will be seen that the difference in average age of pupils grade for grade in town and county increases as the race proceeds.

(6) On reaching the seventh grade, the last year of the elementary school, the pupils in the rural schools are 14.7 years of age, while the seventh-grade pupils in the Kinston school are 13.4 years of age, the seventh-grade pupils in the LaGrange school are 12.8 years of age, and the National Standard Age for this grade 12.5 years of age. This means that the seventh-grade pupils in the rural schools of the county are 1.3 years older than the seventh-grade pupils in the Kinston school, 1.9 years older than the seventh-grade pupils in the LaGrange school, and 2.2 years older than the National Standard Age for this grade.

(7) From the foregoing facts it seems reasonable to conclude that under the present plan the pupils in the rural schools of the county are, in comparison with the children of Kinston and LaGrange, losing from one to two valuable years in getting ready for high school, losing from one to two years in getting ready for college, losing from one to two years in getting through college and entering upon their life work.

If each of the 2,772 children now enrolled in the rural schools of the county lose from one to two years in preparation for high school, for college, and for their life work, it would mean a loss of approximately 3,000 years in the proper preparation of these children for efficient living and for efficient citizenship.

But the vital question here arises: How under the present plan can this continual loss of this valuable time to these future citizens of the county in preparation for their life work and for efficient citizenship be prevented?

VII. WHAT PER CENT OF THE PUPILS IN THE RURAL SCHOOLS
ARE OVER AGE, NORMAL AGE AND UNDER AGE FOR THEIR
GRADE?

TABLE 59—Showing—
North Carolina's StandardOne-teacherRural Schools of CountyKinston SchoolsLaGrange School
Total number4992,7721,617403
Over age82.3%78.2%55.0%52.9%
Normal age16.7%18.26%38.0%40.0%
Under age1.0%3.54%.7%7.1%

(1) In this discussion we are considering “over age,” “normal age,” and “under age,” calculated on the basis of a one-year span. We have assumed that a single “year-age is standard” for any one particular grade; that a pupil entering the first grade should be six years old; that a pupil in the second grade should be seven years old; that a pupil in the third grade should be eight years, and so on through the school course. Therefore, since the legal age for school entrance in this State is six years, the pupil who enters the first grade at six years old is considered of normal age for this grade, the pupil who is in the second grade during his seventh year is considered of normal age for this grade, and so on. On the other hand, based upon this one-year span for a grade, the seven-year-old pupil in the first grade is considered “over age” for this grade, likewise the eight-year-old pupil who is in the second grade is considered over age for this grade. On this same basis the pupil in the first grade who is five years old is considered under age for this grade, the pupil six years old in the second grade is considered under age for this grade, and so on through the course.

Of course it would be justifiable to use the two-year span instead of the one-year span, as is sometimes done. On this basis the normal age for the first grade would include ages six and seven instead of age six only. The second grade would include ages seven and eight instead of seven only, and so on through the course.

(2) From the above table it will be seen that in the one-teacher schools of the county eighty-two pupils out of each one hundred enrolled are older than they should be for their grade, in the Kinston school only fifty-five, and in the LaGrange school only fifty-two. This means that out of every one hundred children enrolled in the one-teacher school there are 27 more pupils over age for their grade than in the Kinston school, and 30 pupils more over age for their grade than in the LaGrange school.





(3) It will be still further observed that in the one-teacher schools only 18 pupils out of every one hundred enrolled are in the grade they should be in for their age; that in the Kinston schools 38 pupils, while in the LaGrange school 40 pupils or 150 per cent more in the grade they should be in for their age.

With its 82 pupils out of each one hundred enrolled over age for their grade, and with only 18 pupils of normal age for their grade, then it must appear self-evident that the little one-teacher school by the side of the road is an undoubted success as a hold-back strap (?) to its pupils in their effort to climb from grade to grade. In the rural schools of the county as a whole we find 78 pupils out of each one hundred enrolled older than they should be for their age against Kinston's 55 and LaGrange's 52.9.

With this large percentage of the pupils older than they should be for their grade, it must appear conclusive that there is an overwhelming amount of retardation in the rural schools of the county. While it is reasonable to believe that a part of this retardation is due to late entrance of pupils into school, yet a still larger amount of this retardation is due to the very nature of the situation itself, the failure of the pupils to be promoted, which in turn is made impossible by the short school term, proor gradation and classification of pupils, poor teaching and a lack of closer supervision.

VIII. ARE THE PUPILS IN THE RURAL SCHOOLS PROPERLY
GROUPED IN ACCORDANCE WITH THEIR NATURAL DEVELOP-
MENT AND MENTAL MATURITY?

TABLE 60—Showing the Age Distribution of Children in the One-teacher Schools.
AgeGrade
1234567
52
6501
74312
826187
9181616511
10141116730
112101114103
1227781445
1313381833
14039987
15123654
1611676
170432
182010
19121
202
Totals159786657723730
NOTE.—The figures underscored are those indicating the number of pupils in each grade who are in the grade they should be in for their age.

(1) From the foregoing table it will be observed that the ages of the pupils in the first grade of the one-teacher schools ranges from five years of age to fifteen years of age; that in the fifth grade the ages of the pupils range from 9 to 19, and that in the seventh grade the ages of the pupils range from 12 to 20 years.

With this marked difference in the maturity of children five years old and fifteen years old in the first grade, nine years old and nineteen years old in the fifth grade, twelve years old and twenty years old in the seventh grade; with these marked differences in the maturity of the pupils in the same grade, it must appear plain even to a wayfaring parent that effective teaching on the part of the teacher and progressive advancement on the part of the pupils becomes well nigh impossible.

TABLE 61—Showing the Age Distribution of Pupils in All but Two Rural Schools of the County.
AgeGrade
1234567891011Total
5361
62594
7199626
8123894681
97184732961
10425892741962
1114336274371841
12133137537431232
13110264169422441
141101235354343791
15338192838421760
1600515192328202050
17010512151421732
1854516822
190332546
20111562
Totals76238636735930822620391511722,772
NOTE.—The figures underscored are those indicating the number of pupils in each grade who are in the grade they should be in for their age.

When we consider the age grade distribution of the pupils in the rural schools as a whole we find the differences in the maturity of pupils in the same grade equally as great as those noted in the one-teacher school. There we find pupils five years old and fifteen years old in the first grade, here we find pupils five years old and pupils seventeen years old in the second, of a difference of twelve years; here we find pupils eight years old and pupils twenty years old in the fourth grade; and here, too, we find pupils eleven years old and pupils twenty years old in the eighth grade, the first year of high school.





Owing to the fact that the rural teachers are already having to teach from three to seven grades of work a day, they are unable to provide separate sections in the same grade for these mature pupils, but in large measure have to teach all the pupils in any one grade in the same class. In the first grade she has to teach the child five years old and the pupil fifteen years old in the same class; in the fourth grade she has to teach the girl eight years old and the boy twenty years old in the same class. In the eighth grade or first year high school she has to teach the girl eleven years old and the young man twenty years old in the same class. Under such conditions as these how is it possible for the teacher to do real teaching, or for the pupils to make even a fair degree of advancement in their studies?

IX. PERCENTAGE OF RURAL PUPILS AND PERCENTAGE OF LAGRANGE AND KINSTON PUPILS OF NORMAL AGE FOR THEIR GRADE

TABLE 62—Showing—
Grade
1234567891011
Rural341612.586.3811.34.417.600
LaGrange50.826.613.644.452.45043.930.3245025
Kinston43.841.536.741.739.337.633.928.834.927.114.3

(1) From the foregoing table it will be observed that of all the first-grade rural pupils only 34 per cent are of normal age for this grade; that of all the first-grade pupils in the LaGrange school 50.8 per cent, and that of all first-grade pupils in the Kinston school 43.8 per cent are of normal age for this grade.

The first grade is supposed to be the beginning grade for six-year-old children. These young children cannot simply be given a book and sent to their seats to study their lessons with no further assistance from their teacher till they are called up to “recite.” They are almost entirely dependent upon the teacher for help and directions in their work. But with only 34 pupils out of each one hundred enrolled in this grade, who are of normal age for this grade with the marked differences in the experiences, natural development and maturity of the pupils, it must seem very clear that the advancement of first-grade children in the rural schools of the county must be slow indeed, and that really effective teaching of this heterogeneous mass becomes an almost impossible task.

(2) In the fifth grade it will be noted that only 6 rural pupils, 39 Kinston pupils, and 52 LaGrange pupils out of each one hundred enrolled are of normal age for this grade.

(3) In the tenth grade in the rural schools of the county it is noticeable that there are no pupils of normal age for this grade; in the LaGrange school 50 pupils, and in the Kinston school 27 out of each hundred enrolled are of normal age for this grade.

With only 34 first-grade pupils out of each one hundred enrolled in the rural school of the county of normal age for their grade against 50 in the LaGrange

and 43 in the Kinston school; with only 6 fifth-grade pupils out of each one hundred enrolled in the rural schools of normal age for their grade, against 52 in the LaGrange school and 39 in the Kinston school; with no tenth-grade pupils in the rural schools of the county of normal age, against 50 in the LaGrange school, and 27 out of every one hundred enrolled in the Kinston school—facing this complex situation it must seem plain that equality of opportunity of the rural children of the county with the children of Kinston and LaGrange in advancing through the grades cannot reasonably be expected.





CHAPTER X
ARE RURAL TEACHERS DEVELOPING IN THE PUPILS
THE POWERS AND HABITS OF MIND ESSENTIAL IN
MAKING A GOOD CITIZEN?

(1) POWER AND HABIT OF SETTING UP WORTHY PURPOSES AND ATTAINING THEM.

(2) POWER AND HABIT OF WEIGHING THE RELATIVE VALUE OF FACTS.

(3) POWER AND HABIT OF SELF-DIRECTION, OF INITIATIVE, AND INDEPENDENT THINKING.

(4) POWER AND HABIT OF ORGANIZING IDEAS AND FACTS ABOUT A CONTROLLING PRINCIPLE OR IDEA.

According to Dr. Frank McMurray, in his Elementary School Standards, the provision the teacher's method makes for the adequate development of the foregoing powers and habits of mind, constitutes a reasonable standard by which to measure the worth of her teaching.

In order to form an intelligent, just and reliable notion of the extent to which the white rural teachers of the county are succeeding or failing in the light of these recognized and accepted standards of worth, every white rural school in the county was visited with one single exception. The teaching of a total of 151 recitations, including all the subjects taught in the rural schools, was closely studied.

(1) Power and Habit of Setting up Worthy Purposes and Attaining Them. The word purpose as here used carries with it almost the same idea as the word aim or motive. In everyday life we use the word purpose or aim. In the neighborhood we hear of the man who is leading an aimless or purposeless sort of life. Today he is working at one job, tomorrow he is working at another job. Today he seems to be starting out to accomplish one purpose, tomorrow he is moving to accomplish an entirely different purpose. He does not stick to any one particular thing till he completes it. We call him a “Jack of All Trades” and specially good at none. We say the man lacks stability of character; he is set down as mere drift-wood, a failure in the community. But the chief cause for his instability of character, his failure as a worthy citizen in the neighborhood lies in his inability to set, for himself, a worthy purpose and persist in his efforts till he sees it through.

Hence if the rural children of the county are to become effective workers, are to grow into good and worth-while citizens, development in this power and habit of setting worthy purposes for themselves and attaining them must constitute one of the fundamental aims of instruction, and the teacher who is failing at this point is evidently failing at one of the strategic points of teaching.

It must appear self-evident that if the teacher is to develop in her pupils this power and habit of setting for themselves worthy purposes and attaining them, she herself must have this power and habit of mind; she herself must necessarily study carefully and thoroughly each lesson she teaches in order to grasp fully and clearly the main and vitalizing ideas in the lesson that will serve to arouse interest and challenge the reflective thinking of her pupils in the mastery of it.

However, under the present district plan of educating the rural children of the county, with the number of grades per teacher ranging from four to

seven, with the number of daily classes ranging from seventeen to thirty-two, the teacher finds adequate daily preparation of each lesson she teaches not only impractical, but totally impossible.

A teacher in one of these little schools was conducting a reading lesson. The selection included several lessons. The teacher was asked the main idea in this selection she hoped to leave in the minds of her pupils—the underlying purpose she was proposing to her pupils for the mastery of this selection. With a tone of despair in her voice she replied that she did not know; that she had not read the selection through; that she began teaching (rather hearing lessons) at eight in the morning and taught till four o'clock in the afternoon, and that was all she could do. Had the supervisor spent a whole half day in teaching this story to the children for this teacher, showing her how this beautiful piece of literature could be used to develop in her pupils the power and habit of purpose-forming, and purpose-attaining, the teaching in this school on the following day would have gone on as usual. The teacher realized full well that she was in a situation in which careful and thorough preparation of each lesson she was to teach was entirely out of the question. Therefore she would not have felt encouraged even to attempt it.

In assigning the next lesson the teacher has a fine opportunity for developing in her pupils this power and training them into the habit of setting up worthy aims and persisting till they are attained or approximately so. However, lacking the time to prepare carefully each lesson she teaches, she dismisses the class at the close of the recitation without making it clear to them just what they are supposed to do in the study of this new lesson, without arousing their interest in it or without proposing to them a vitalizing purpose that serves to challenge their thinking and guide them in the mastery of it. Hence the only motive they have for the study of this lesson when they return home is to please their teacher, to become acquainted with it to avoid being kept after school the following day. Inevitably their study of this new lesson under such an assignment and under such teaching is a rambling, aimless, purposeless sort of effort, naturally tending to fix in those pupils an aimless and rambling sort of habit that eventually results in the formation of a character that is aimless and purposeless in life.

TYPICAL LESSON ASSIGNMENTS OBSERVED IN THE VARIOUS
WHITE RURAL SCHOOLS OF COUNTY

SECOND GRADE READING LESSON—Teacher: “Next lesson about Queen Bee. Take next two pages.”

FOURTH GRADE READING LESSON—Teacher: “We will find out in our next lesson whether he found these Golden Apples.”

SEVENTH GRADE READING LESSON—Teacher: “Take this lesson over again; want you to know it tomorrow.”

SIXTH GRADE GEOGRAPHY—Teacher: “Tomorrow I want you to be able to tell where you find the giraffe, elephant, ostrich, and all the animals you see in the circus.”

SEVENTH GRADE GEOGRAPHY—Teacher: “Tomorrow we have the North Central States. I want an outline map showing states and capitals. Tell me something interesting about these states.”

FOURTH GRADE SPELLING—Teacher: “All right, get this whole column.”

THIRD GRADE ARITHMETIC—Teacher: “Tomorrow we will take the eighth line and say it forwards and backwards.”

SIXTH GRADE ARITHMETIC—Teacher: “Tomorrow we will take up measurements. Take down to 23 on page 215.”

SIXTH GRADE HISTORY—Teacher: “Tomorrow find out how educational advantages of children in the South before the Civil War compare with the educational advantages of the children of today.”





SIXTH GRADE AGRICULTURE—Teacher: “Finish this for the next time.”

With one or two exceptions in the foregoing typical lesson assignments, there is nothing done to cause these pupils to study the new lesson with any worth-while purpose in mind, or that tends to develop in them the slightest degree the power or the habit of studying or working with a serious purpose in view.

Not only is it imperative that pupils be developed in the power of setting up worth-while purposes, but it is equally imperative that they be trained in the habit of persistent effort till their worth-while purpose is either attained, or approximately so. There are people in the neighborhood who seem to have the power of starting many different things, but who never finish any of them. They seem to be self-starters, but never get far. Today they start out impelled by a worthy purpose, but soon become diverted, and tomorrow finds them swayed by quite a different purpose. They are classed in the neighborhood as failures because they are lacking in stick-to-it-iveness. Hence the need for developing in the pupils both the power and habit of setting up worthy purposes and the power and habit of not stopping until these purposes are reached.

In the foregoing typical assignments, however, no worth-while purpose or motive being proposed by the teacher for the study and the mastery of the new lesson, of course the formation of the habit of persisting till purposes set are reached is rendered impossible. Therefore, when the recitation comes to its close the pupils, instead of the feeling of joy at having solved the problem they set out to solve, the main purpose in the lesson they have been struggling to reach, simply have the feeling that for them one more recitation period has ended, one more uninteresting school duty performed, and one recitation nearer the recess period or the dismissal of school.

Consequently it is not difficult to see that the teachers failing in their lesson assignments to set up for their pupils worth-while objectives that would help them in their thinking through the lesson, are failing at this first strategic point in the recitation to develop in their pupils the power and habit of setting up worthy purposes and living up to them, and are failing at this very first teaching opportunity to develop in their pupils one of the first essential virtues in the making of a good citizen.

(2) Power and Habit of Weighing the Relative Value of Facts. Weighing the relative value of facts in any given case, or in any one situation clearly carries the idea that not all facts in any one lesson or in any one situation are of equal weight or value. It means that in the process of teaching all the facts in the lesson are not to be left on a dead level in the pupil's mind. Developing in the pupils this power and habit of weighing the relative value of facts, means teaching the pupils to reason accurately, to think logically and consecutively; to look ahead to see causes and their effects. It means developing in the pupils both the power and the habit of considering carefully all the facts in any given situation before making up their minds about it. It means studying both sides of any given question before pronouncing judgment on it. It is a foe of provincialism, of a narrow, selfish sordidness; it is a foe of petty bickerings, of blind partizanship whether it be racial, political or religious. It promotes breadth of understanding and a wise toleration that comes from having considered carefully all the issues involved, from having weighed carefully the evidence on both sides of the case before rendering a verdict.

Our daily living is a constant challenge to this exercise of a discriminating judgment. Daily decisions have to be made. From this there is no escape, whether we buy or whether we sell; whether we produce or whether we consume; whether we vote one party ticket or whether we vote some other party ticket; whether we vote for or whether we vote against the county-wide

plan for school consolidation and school building, judgments of some sort have to be made and the value of these judgments, the soundness of our conclusions are determined by our power and habit of mind in considering and weighing carefully all the facts in the case before rendering a decision.

One distinction between those in the community who fail and those who succeed is this power and habit of weighing carefully all the evidence bearing upon the issue involved, or reasoning accurately, of thinking straight, of forming discriminating and valid judgments.

Therefore, if the boys and girls now growing up in the rural districts of the county are to grow into good and worthy citizens, the need is clearly seen to be imperative that those who now teach them must develop in them this power and habit of mind indispensable in the making of a worthy citizen.

But the vital question here arises, Are those who now teach those boys and girls developing in them this essential power and habit?

TYPICAL LESSONS OBSERVED IN GEOGRAPHY

FOURTH GRADE GEOGRAPHY—Teacher: “Tell me what climate is. Now go ahead and tell me something about climate. Can't raise same things in all parts of the world, can we? Tell me something about transportation. This is the first time you have failed in geography this year.”

FOURTH GRADE GEOGRAPHY—Teacher: “What are we studying about? Pupil: “Neighbors.” Teacher: “What are they? Pupil: “People who live next to you.” Teacher: “Are all neighbors the same? What means good neighbors? What is occupation? Mention some.” Teacher: “Mining and farming.” Teacher: “What is agriculture?” Pupil: “Working on a farm.” Teacher: “What is the principal occupation of farmers?” Teacher: “Agriculture.” Teacher: “What is a garden? What are sheep raised for? What do you call an occupation like this (pointing to a picture)?” Teacher: “Grazing.” Teacher: “What is lumbering? What is quarrying? What is copper, gold and silver used for? Then what is mining? What is manufacturing?” Teacher: “Changing raw products into finished products.” “What do you have to do to cotton before you get a finished product? What is fishing and hunting?” Teacher: “When you go to a mill-pond and catch fish, that is fishing. What is commerce?” Teacher: “Buying and selling.” “Where does this lesson get down to?”

Teacher assigns next lesson: “Let's get down to page 49.”

In taking up the new lesson, neither teacher does anything to arouse in the minds of her pupils a thirst for more knowledge about this subject or propose to them any worth-while objective that will serve to challenge and guide their thinking in the mastery of it.

The first of the foregoing lessons is so completely lacking in educative value for the pupils as to render a discussion of it here practically useless.

In the second lesson there can be no clear connection in the minds of the pupils between the beginning and closing point of the recitation. This is a mistake common to teachers.

Here the teacher starts out with the question, “What are we studying about?” to which one pupil replies, “Neighbors.” The teacher closes the recitation with the question, “What is commerce?” The pupils seemingly start out with the hazy idea in mind that their lesson is to be something about neighbors, and wind up the recitation with the very vague feeling that somehow and in some way the lesson also has to do with commerce. Consequently it is inevitable that the mental movement of the pupils through this recitation is purposeless and aimless.

In two questions only in the entire recitation are the pupils given the slightest opportunity to consider the relative worth of facts discussed or to





make discriminating judgments. This opportunity occurs in the teacher's questions, “Are all neighbors the same?” “What means good neighbors?” But even here the pupils were not led to discuss the difference between a good neighbor and a poor neighbor or to tell what in their mind makes a good neighbor. These questions were quite probably purely perfunctory on the part of the teacher.

With the two exceptions noted above, the teacher's questions were fact questions only, and the mental faculty appealed to was the memory only.

As is seen from the lesson, the teacher answered a large number of her own questions. This may have been due to the teacher's failure at the very beginning of her recitation to propose to her pupils a worth-while objective for the mastery of the lesson. Consequently the pupils not being clear as to which way she is heading, naturally follow her blindly and slavishly. Or it may have been due to the fact that the subject-matter of the recitation was beyond their grasp.

On the whole, the geography teaching observed is not developing in these pupils the power and habit of setting up worthy purposes and reaching them; is not developing in them the power and the habit of considering the relative worth of facts in any given case nor the power and the habit of logical and consecutive thinking. The teaching is failing to develop in these pupils this second essential virtue indispensable to the making of a good citizen.

(3) Power and Habit of Individual Initiative. In a democratic government like ours individual initiative, independent thinking, self-direction, and the ability to lead others, is encouraged to the fullest extent, and constitutes an indispensable quality in the making of a good and an efficient citizen.

One vital difference between those in the community who fail and those who succeed, is the power and habit of initiative and self-direction, the power to meet new situations as they arise. Two men living in the same neighborhood are brought to face the same new situation. Both men have approximately the same amount of accumulated information. The first man meets this situation with the traditional remedy. It fails. He throws up the sponge in despair. The other tries the same traditional remedy. It fails. But he does not give up. He begins to experiment. Experiment after experiment fails. But still he does not throw up the sponge. He persists in seeking new information, in making new experiments. Finally his efforts are crowned with success. The reason for the failure of the one and the success of the other is found in the lack in the one, and the power and habit in the other of initiative, self-direction and independent thinking.

If then the pupils in the rural schools are to grow into men and women with the habit of self-reliance, with the power of initiative, the ability to lead in the affairs of the community and county, if they are to grow into good and efficient citizens, then the development of their power and training them into habits of self-reliance and self-direction must constitute one of the most important aims of the teacher.

TYPICAL READING LESSONS OBSERVED

PRIMER CLASS—(Teacher calls the class of four or five up to the front bench. Calls one of the number up to her.) Teacher: “All right, you may read.” (Pupil starts off but fumbles the first word.) Teacher: “Spell it.” Pupil: “H-e-l-p, help.” He reads on as the teacher points to the words. After muddling through a sentence or two the teacher sends him to his seat and calls another up to her side. He, too, tries to read as the teacher points to the words. After stumbling through a sentence or two he also is sent to his seat. And thus the reading lesson goes on. It may be called the pop-a-cap and fall-back method. But little firing is done.

The teacher at the beginning of the recitation has no discussion of the story they are to read. She has no drill on new and difficult words. Does nothing to arouse the curiosity or interest of pupils in the new story. They have no worth-while motive in reading it. They are going through this performance not because they are trying to find anything they are interested in, but because they have to.

During the recitation the teacher asks no questions to see that the pupils are getting the meaning of the story, to arouse or to keep up their interest. At the close of the recitation there is no discussion of the story read to see whether or not it has meant anything to them. There is nothing done at any time during the recitation to increase their power of getting new words, to develop their power of initiative, or to make them independent readers. It must seem clear that this recitation has been lifeless, mechanical, a meaningless word calling performance.

SECOND GRADE READING LESSON: This is a continuous story. This is the second or third lesson in the selection. Teacher has the pupils tell parts of the story already read, after which she begins at once today's lesson. Teacher: “Open your books. Let us first look at the first sentence to ourselves.” Teacher calls on a pupil to read this sentence orally. After each sentence is read silently, one pupil is called on to read it orally. This method prevails throughout the recitation.

The practice of having pupils in the first grade read sentences silently before calling on them to read orally is no doubt helpful. In the second grade, however, the unit of thought for silent reading may well be larger than simply the sentence. It may include the paragraph or section.

The above recitation, however, leaves much to be desired. After having her pupils tell the part of the continuous story read on previous days, the teacher plunges at once into today's lesson. No questions asked at the beginning of the recitation about the story of today's lesson that would arouse the curiosity or interest of pupils in it. No worth-while purpose proposed to guide pupils in its mastery.

There is nothing done to make sure that during their study period they mastered the pronunciation of new and difficult words or understand their meaning. During the reading of the lesson on class no questions are asked by the teacher to make sure that pupils either understand or appreciate the story they are reading.

At the close of the recitation period no questions are asked to make sure that the pupils have grasped the story as a whole.

While this was among the best second-grade reading lessons observed in the county, yet there was nothing done to develop in the pupils the power and habit of setting a worth-while purpose and persisting till it is attained, or little done to develop in them the power and habit of organizing ideas or facts about one main thought in the lesson. All facts in the lesson were left on a dead level in the minds of the pupils.

THIRD GRADE READING LESSON: FOX AS HERDSMAN.

Teacher: “Read first.” Pupil begins. Soon comes to a word he cannot pronounce. Teacher: “Spell it.” The pupil spells it and reads on. Soon he is up against another difficult word. Teacher pronounces it. Another pupil comes to the bat. He, too, reads a few words and knocks a foul. Teacher: “Let Margaret read some.” Soon Margaret goes to the mat, and the teacher helps her up. By this time the teacher is growing weary of this performance. Teacher: “Dan, you begin at the first ‘the Fox as Herdsman.’ Do you know what a herdsman is?”

Assigns next lesson: “Want you to find out if the fox did eat the old woman's goose.”





As the teacher in the second-grade lesson, so this teacher in this third-grade lesson starts at once into the lesson. At the beginning of the recitation she asks no questions to see if the pupils really know what a herdsman is. No use is made of the pupil's own experience. She asks no questions to arouse curiosity or interest of pupils in the story they are about to read, proposes no real motive for its mastery. She does nothing to make sure that pupils during their study period have mastered the mechanics of the lesson, have been able to pronounce the new and difficult words or to know their meaning. Consequently the oral reading and preparation for reading are combined into one activity. Hence the failure of both.

During the reading of the lesson no questions are asked by the teacher to see that the pupils are really understanding or appreciating the story they are reading.

The teacher is pronouncing the difficult words for the pupils. They are given but little opportunity to get new and difficult words for themselves. The teacher is not making self-reliant and independent readers. Tomorrow they will have no more power to get difficult words for themselves than they have today.

The teacher is doing practically nothing to develop in her pupils the power and habit of forming discriminating judgments, of doing any real thinking. They are not asked to express any opinion about any part of the lesson or story they are reading, whether they like one part of the lesson or story they are reading better than some other part or whether they like the story at all. The last question at the close of the recitation, “Do you know what a herdsman is?” clearly should have been asked at the beginning of the recitation. There were two questions only asked by the teacher during the entire recitation.

There was nothing said by the teacher at the close of the recitation to make pupils think back through the lesson and sum up the whole story a complete unit in their mind. One fact in the story stood out just as prominently in their minds as any other fact in the story. And all facts in the story lay in the minds of pupils as separate and unrelated atoms of information.

SIXTH GRADE READING LESSON. ADVENTURES OF DON QUIXOTE.

Teacher: “Read first, Lottie.” Lottie reads till she gets to a word a bit difficult to pronounce and strikes the hesitation step. Teacher pronounces the word outright for her. Soon Lottie reaches another word she cannot pronounce and hits the hesitation stride again. Again the teacher relieves Lottie of all effort and pronounces the word. The teacher feels the need of diversion. She tries another pupil: “Start there, Marsh.” But Marsh does not go far when soon he stubs his toe and falls head first over one of those new and untried words. The teacher picks him up also. By this time she is becoming very tired. She tries another, hoping for better luck: “Start there, Mary.” And thus the reading lesson proceeds till the final culmination.

Assigns the next lesson—Teacher: “Take the Enchanted Fox for tomorrow, and get down to page 214.”

It is observed that this teacher also plunged at once into this lesson. She did not stop to question her class to see if they had ever heard before of Don Quixote or of anybody like him. No questions were asked to arouse any interest in this character they were going to read about. No worth-while purpose is proposed to guide them in the mastery of this lesson. They are going to tackle it, not because they care anything about Don Quixote or his adventures, but simply because they have to.

There was no drill on new and difficult words before beginning the lesson. Tackling mechanical difficulties and trying to get the sense of the story went along together. Consequently neither one went fast. Both problems failed of solution.

During the attempt at the oral reading of the lesson no questions were asked to see that the pupils were understanding it or appreciating it.

The teacher by pronouncing all the difficult words outright for her pupils did nothing to develop in them the power and habit of getting new and difficult words for themselves. She did nothing to make them self-reliant and independent readers. She was making them dependents instead of freemen.

During the recitation pupils are not asked to express any opinion about these Adventures of Don Quixote, which one they like best of all or whether they liked any of them, and if so, why. Nothing was done to make them think or form discriminating judgments.

At the close of the recitation no questions are asked by the teacher to cause the pupils to go back through the story and organize it in their minds as a complete story and a complete unit of thought. Each fact, each adventure was left on a dead level in their minds.

Although this was a sixth-grade class, yet what educative value did they get out of these performances.

Hence it is clear that the rural teachers of the county are failing at this third strategic point in teaching—the development in the pupils the power and habit of initiative, of independent thinking, of leadership, the third indispensable virtue in the making of a good citizen.

(4) Power and Habit of Organizing Facts, Ideas. This means that all the different facts brought out in the lesson on whatever subject are not to be left on a dead level in the mind of the child because in any lesson all facts in it have not equal value. But it means the most worth-while ideas in the lesson are to be grouped in the mind of the pupil about the big unifying idea or about the vital unifying principle. Says Froud: “Detached facts and miscellaneous subjects, as they are taught in the modern school, are like separate letters in the alphabet. Your young prodigy may amaze examiners and delight inspectors. And all this while you have been feeding him chips of granite. But arrange your letters into words and each word becomes a thought, a symbol making in the mind and image of a real thing. Group your words into sentences, and thought is married to thought and the chips of granite become soft bread, wholesome, nutritious and invigorating.”

The weighing of the relative values of facts, of ideas may be considered as the actual beginning of the movement, while the organization of the facts may be considered as the culmination of the mind's movement in grasping the unifying factor or the underlying principle in the given situation.

One difference between those in the community who fail and those who succeed is the ability to analyze the actual life situations which confront them; pick out the most important factors involved; to see clearly their bearing one upon another, and the bearing of all of them upon the situation as a whole. Those who fail have facts enough, but have not power to see their close connection, they are simply unrelated atoms in their mind. Hence they are failures in the community. We say their failure is due to lack of system, but this due to scattered thinking. But this scattered thinking is due to lack of training in the organization of ideas about a guiding and controlling principle of action.

It must seem clear, then, that if the pupils are to grow into men and women with the power of bringing to bear all that they know upon the situation, upon practical life problems that confront them daily; if they are to become really efficient citizens in the life of the community, then while in school this power and habit must be adequately developed.





TYPICAL LESSON IN HISTORY OBSERVED

SEVENTH GRADE HISTORY—Teacher: “What colony are we studying today? Why did Roger Williams leave Massachusetts? Where was he making his way to? What was the place called? Where is Providence? After he spends a while there, who joins him?” Teacher: “By his friends.” “What did they believe?” Teacher: “Same way that he did.” “What did they do then?” “Journeyed on.” “What did they buy from the Indians?” “Good.” Teacher: “What did they call this settlement?” Pupil: “Providence.” Teacher: “All right, who is the next one we take up?” “Where was she driven from. Two years later where was the settlement?” Teacher: “New Port, wasn't it?” “Were there two new settlements made at that place?” Teacher: “All right, what about the government of Rhode Island? Was this scheme different from what it was in Massachusetts? Now Rhode Island is the first colony to have what? What did they come here for?” “Entire religious freedom.”

Assignment of next lesson—Teacher: “Take next colony and New Haven City on page 80.”

As is seen from the above detailed account, the teacher plunges at once into this history lesson. There is no reviewing or clinching in the minds of the pupils essential facts gone over the previous day in this subject. No connection is made in the minds of the pupils between what they learned yesterday and what they are going to take up today in this subject. Nothing is done to quicken their interest in today's lesson, no worth-while purpose proposed that will challenge or guide their reflective thinking in the mastery of it.

In the foregoing lesson one question only has any tendency to challenge the pupils to weigh and consider the relative worth of facts in two situations before rendering a decision. This is the question: Teacher, “Was this scheme different from what it was in Massachusetts?” But even here the likeness or the unlikeness of these two settlements was not developed in the minds of the pupils by the teacher, therefore her question was purely or largely perfunctory. Hence nothing of value was done by the teacher to develop in her pupils the power and the habit of making discriminating judgments, or reaching valid conclusions.

At the close of the recitation no questions were asked by the teacher to cause the minds of the pupils to move back through this lesson, organizing the individual facts brought out about any one main idea in the lesson or about any controlling historical movement. Hence all facts in the lesson at the close of the recitation were left upon a dead level in the minds of her pupils—were left simply as an accumulation of separate and undigested and unrelated atoms of information.

The assignment for next day's lesson simply calls for memorizing what facts they can, big or little alike, relevant and irrelevant as well.

And yet the above lesson was among the best history lessons observed in the rural schools of the county.

TYPICAL LESSONS OBSERVED IN ARITHMETIC

THIRD GRADE: Subject—MULTIPLICATION AND DIVISION. (One pupil in the class.)

Teacher: “Twenty-one divided by three equals what?” “How many times does twenty-one contain three?” Teacher: “Seven.” Teacher: “If you divide twenty-four by three, what do you get?” Pupil: “Eight.” Teacher: “Twelve divided by six?” Pupil: “Two.” Teacher: “Fourteen divided by seven?” Pupil: “Two.” Teacher: “Sixteen by eight?” Pupil: “Two.” Teacher: “Twenty divided by two?” Pupil: “Ten.” Teacher: “Twenty-four divided by eight?” Pupil: “Three.” Here the lesson ends.

As is seen from the above, the pupil starts out on this recitation without any worth-while objective to reach. He does not know whether it is to be a drill lesson to give him a chance to increase his speed and accuracy, or whether it is to be a practical application of what he has learned on previous days about this particular process. Consequently he is following his teacher's questioning blindly and slavishly not knowing whither she is taking him.

There is no practical application of this process in the working out of everyday problems common in the pupil's daily experience. Hence the work the pupil is required to do is purely mechanical, purely formal, appealing to his memory only, without any worth-while motive in his mind to make even this purely mechanical drill amount to anything for him. Consequently when this recitation period closed the pupil was not clearly conscious of having gained anything of real worth.

SIXTH GRADE ARITHMETIC. (Seven pupils in the class.) Teacher: “Who worked all the examples?” Not one had worked them all. Teacher now sends four of the pupils to the blackboard and gives each pupil a different problem to work. Each pupil reads his own problem from the book, and then begins its solution. As each pupil finishes his particular problem, the teacher asks him to read his answer, and if it is correct he takes his seat feeling that his obligation for further mental effort during the recitation period is discharged. In case a pupil finds difficulty in working his particular problem, the teacher goes to him and helps him through. There is but little questioning about the particular steps the pupil took in getting the correct answer. There is one problem in the lesson that none of the pupils had been able to work before coming to class. The teacher works this outright for the class.

The class period was 30 minutes. Each pupil was required to work one problem only during this 30-minute period. It took each pupil on the average between 5 and 10 minutes to work his particular problem. The above method of procedure in conducting the arithmetic recitation is characteristic of the method observed in the teaching of arithmetic in the best rural schools of the county.

As is seen, the teacher begins at once today's lesson without having the pupils recall the particular process in arithmetic they were dealing with in yesterday's lesson or the particular process they are to deal with in today's lesson. No clear connection is fixed in the pupil's mind between what he learned yesterday in this subject and the process he is supposed to deal with today. Hence through this practice on the part of the teacher each process learned in arithmetic is standing out in the minds of her pupils as an unrelated process. And this practice tends to produce in their minds a chaotic jumble of all arithmetical processes studied.

In starting out the recitation the teacher does not propose to her pupils any really worth-while objective or purpose for them to reach in today's lesson. There is no specific goal set up to challenge or guide their thinking during the recitation with the exception of the particular problem assigned to work.

Since each pupil is given one problem only to solve during the recitation: since he is not required to participate in the solution of the problem assigned to other members of his class, and since it requires on the average from 5 to 10 minutes for each pupil to solve his individual problem, it is seen that for about five-sixths of his recitation period the pupil's mind is left to ramble at will, and that practically five-sixths of his time on class is wasted by this method of conducting the recitation.

It is quite probable that while one pupil at one end of the blackboard is working a problem he knew perfectly well how to solve before coming to class, another pupil at the other end of the blackboard is explaining to the teacher his particular problem, which happens to be the only problem in the lesson the first pupil could not work before coming to class. Consequently at the





end of the recitation this first pupil has learned absolutely nothing about working the only problem in the lesson he could not work. This pupil has gained nothing from this recitation except a little drill in working a problem he had worked before, and even this mechanical drill has taxed his mind for about one-sixth only of this recitation period of 30 minutes.

Had the teacher given all the pupils the same problem, and brought all members of the class into active participation in the solution of each, each pupil instead of solving one problem only during the 30 minutes period would have solved four problems at least, would have gotten four times the amount of drill, would have been able to profit by the suggestions of all members of the class, and by the necessary explanation of the teacher, and would have been kept mentally alert for the full 30 minutes. No pupil would have gone from the class without a clear understanding of how to solve every problem in the lesson.

In helping one pupil at the time, while the others were busily engaged in working their particular problem, all members of the class failed to benefit from the teacher's individual help. Her method was too individualistic.

In solving outright the problem none of the class could solve, without bringing the class into active participation in its solution by leading them to suggest the steps to be taken in the solution, the teacher lost a fine opportunity for developing in her pupils the power and habit of self-confidence, self-direction and independent thinking; the power and habit of accurate reasoning and consecutive thinking, and the power and habit of working difficult problems for themselves. It is quite probable that by the teacher's method this class gained no more power for solving difficult problems in tomorrow's lesson than they had before coming on class today. They were supposed to watch her closely while she solved this problem for them and to remember accurately just what she did. The two faculties of mind most exercised were observation and memory.

In concluding this recitation, the teacher did not make her pupils clearly conscious of the vital relation of these separate individual problems they had been solving to the underlying arithmetical principle or process involved. Each particular problem solved stands out as a separate and unrelated atom of knowledge.

Summary. From a visitation to all the white rural schools of the county, with one single exception, from a careful study of more than 150 recitations, including all the subjects taught in the rural schools of the county, and from the typical lessons in the various subjects given in detail in the foregoing pages of this chapter, the following conclusions seem warranted:

(1) All the teachers seem to have a fine spirit of hearty cooperation. Many of them would like to teach well.

(2) Several of the teachers show a lack of careful preparation of the lessons they are trying to teach.

(3) With the number of grades per teacher ranging from four to seven, with the number of daily classes per teacher ranging from 19 to 32, the careful preparation of each lesson taught is simply out of the question. Teachers realize this fact and have not the heart to attempt it. And this would be the case were it possible to employ teachers holding the highest type of certificate and to pay them the maximum salary.

(4) Teachers are not adequately educated or professionally trained for efficient work. Less than 11 per cent are college graduates, including colleges that were not much superior to many of our best high schools of the present, while the education of twenty-six per cent of all the teachers is below high school graduation. With this amount of education and professional training, efficient teaching for these country children cannot be expected now or reasonably hoped for in the future.

(5) From the typical lessons observed in reading and given in detail in the preceding pages, it must appear clear that in whatever grade the subject is taught, the emphasis is placed upon word calling and word-getting, and not upon thought-getting, or upon the appreciation of the selection read.

(6) From the typical lessons observed in geography and history, it seems quite clear that emphasis is upon fact-getting, upon the accumulation of facts, and not upon the organization of those facts about any unifying principle of geographical control, or about any unifying principle or historical movements. All facts thus accumulated, big and little alike, are left upon the same dead level in the mind of the pupil. Memory is the mental faculty almost exclusively brought into play.

(7) From the typical lessons observed in arithmetic, it seems clear that the emphasis is put almost entirely upon getting the correct answer in the back of the book. But little emphasis is put upon analysis, in the consecutive steps in the process by which the correct solution is reached. Therefore accurate reasoning and consecutive thinking is being but little promoted by the teachers in their arithmetic teaching. The teacher's method of conducting her recitation in arithmetic is too individualistic, and for too much of the recitation period the minds of the pupils are left unalert.

(8) Judged by accepted standards, the quality of instruction now being received by the rural children of the county, with an exception here and there, must be judged poor. To say that more than 5 per cent of the teaching observed can be accurately or justly described as real teaching would in all probability be an exaggeration.

(9) From these typical lessons observed, it seems quite clear that the teachers are not developing in their pupils a wholesome attitude toward or a thirst for more knowledge of the subjects they are teaching; are not developing in them the power and the habit of setting for themselves worthy purposes and objectives and persisting in their efforts till they are attained.

(10) It seems quite clear that the teachers are not developing in their pupils the power and habit of selecting the most worth-while facts in any given lesson before attempting to reach a conclusion; of weighing carefully both sides of a given situation before pronouncing judgment; of thinking straight and consecutively to valid judgments.

(11) These pupils are not being developed in the power and habit of self-direction and in the power to lead others along constructive lines. The teachers are doing too much work for their pupils, pronouncing too many words for them, solving too many problems for them, and are doing too much unnecessary explaining to them. They are not leading the pupils to pronounce these words through their own self-activity, are not leading these pupils to solve these difficult problems through their own reflective thinking, nor are they challenging into exercise the pupil's initiative. Consequently the net result of their teaching is tending to develop in their pupils the habit of blind and slavish following rather than an intelligent coöperation and helpful leadership.

(12) Facts accumulated by the pupils in their study of history, geography, literature, agriculture, etc., are left to lie in their minds as separate and unrelated atoms of information, while power and habit of organizing these separate facts about some leading idea in the lesson about some unifying principle of conduct and of life is barely touched.

(13) If to be a good citizen means the power and habit of setting up worthy purposes in life and persisting till these purposes are attained or approximately so; if to be a good citizen means the power and habit of getting all the important facts in a given situation before making up one's mind, of weighing both sides of an issue before pronouncing judgment, of thinking straight and and consecutively to valid conclusions; if to be a good citizen means the





power and the habit of self-direction, of self-control, helpful coöperation and constructive leadership, and if to be a good citizen means the power and the habit of bringing system out of confusion, of organizing separate facts and ideas about controlling principles of conduct and of life, if these powers and habits are indispensable in the making of a good citizen, then the conviction is inevitable that under the present plan of education, with its six months school term only, with the teacher having to teach from four to seven grades, having to hear from 19 to 32 daily classes, with teachers poorly prepared for their work, the future rural citizenship of Lenoir County is not getting now and not likely to get in the future the help they sorely need for growth into the good citizen.

CHAPTER XI
ARE THE PUPILS IN THE RURAL DISTRICTS HAVING
COMFORTABLE, ATTRACTIVE AND WELL-EQUIPPED
BUILDINGS IN WHICH TO ATTEND SCHOOL?

1. A STUDY OF THE RURAL SCHOOLS OF THE COUNTY.

2. DESCRIPTION OF THE BUILDINGS, GROUNDS AND EQUIPMENT.

3. THE PICTURE AND BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF EACH INDIVIDUAL SCHOOL.

4. SUMMARY.

1. A Study of the Rural Schools of the County. One of the essentials in a good school system is a comfortable, attractive and well equipped building in each school district. The forty-two school buildings in the rural districts of Lenoir County were personally investigated by a committee of three, and the results of the investigation are presented here, giving definite information concerning conditions as they are at present.

In order to make a detailed analysis of the school situation studied, the score card method of accumulating the facts was used. The merits of the score card are as follows: A school building is made up of a large number of factors—roof, windows, walls, blackboards, desks, closets, etc., so that if one is to indicate just where conditions are satisfactory and where they are not, one must study each of these factors. Each judge is required to study closely each individual point that goes to make up the building studied. To this individual point must be assigned an individual value. The total of these individual scores determines the score which is given to the whole. The individual item has the same weight in measuring one building that it has in measuring every other building. To determine an individual score reference is constantly made to objective standards carefully worked out. The method of putting the individual scores to the individual items together to form the final score, tends to prevent undue weight being given any one point. Should a scorer over-emphasize any one phase of a school situation that over-emphasis would in all probability be taken care of by the score given by the other judges. With three judges, each giving scores to each item, there is less danger of resulting scores being on the basis of a single opinion, and as each judge constantly refers the single items to determine standards the estimate is likely to be on an objective basis.

The score card has been devised for use in scoring school buildings so that judgments may be rendered on the many detailed items of grounds, buildings and equipment. When a school scores 1,000 points it is considered a satisfactory situation or standard.

The score card used is reproduced here. It will be seen that the 1,000 points are distributed among the different elements of a school situation, so that Item I, location, has been given 65 points; Item II, site, 95 points; Item III, building, 200 points; Item IV, class rooms, 225 points; Item V, equipment, 200 points; Item VI, outside equipment, 175 points, and 40 points for items not included in above divisions.

The distribution of points to items on the score card was made on the basis of the judgments of a very large number of judges familiar with school needs in regard to grounds, buildings and equipment.





SCORE CARD FOR RURAL SCHOOL BUILDINGS
Name of School________________________, District____________, Township________________, County____________
ItemsPerfect ScoreSchool Score
I. LOCATION:65
1. Accessibility30
2. Environment35
II. SITE:95
1. Size20
2. Shape10
3. Drainage20
4. Shape of land10
5. Nature of soil15
6. Use20
(a) Playground
III. BUILDING:200
1. Location on site40
2. Orientation50
3. Gross structure110
(a) Plan—
(1) Adaptability to site50
(b) Material10
(c) Windows15
(d) Doors10
(e) Foundation10
(f) General appearance5
(g) Condition10
IV. CLASSROOMS:225
1. Construction and finish80
2. Size, shape, and adequate number35
3. Lighting60
(a) Window placement30
(b) Glass area20
(c) Shades10
4. Cloak rooms10
(a) Location5
(b) Ventilation5
5. Ventilation25
6. General appearances15
(a) Arrangement5
(b) Neatness and cleanliness5
(c) Paint colors5
V. EQUIPMENT:200
1. Desks and seats30
2. Heating facilities80
3. Water containers5
4. Blackboards15
5. Teacher's desk and supplies5
6. Bookcases, library40
7. Maps and globes10
8. Pictures5
9. Special equipment10
(a) Sand tables
(b) Charts, etc.

ItemsPerfect ScoreSchool Score
VI. OUTSIDE EQUIPMENT:75
1. Water supply60
2. Fuel storage10
3. Flag-pole5
Toilets—
1. Location on site25
2. Type50
3. Adequacy15
4. Condition10
VII. Points not covered in above40
Total1,000

Three scorers worked on each building, and the average score of the three made on each item was the final estimated score for that time. The sum of all estimated scores on each separate item determines the final score on the whole situation, the buildings, grounds and equipment.

Attention is again called to the fact that the score card gives 1,000 points as the standard for any school. The number of estimated points on all items of score card for each of the forty-two rural schools is listed here:

ONE-TEACHER SCHOOLS
White740Pine Forest455
Piney Grove555Fairview450
Oakdale553Lynwood450
Fairfield500Bland440
Taylor500Maple Grove400
Waller500Trent377
Wheat Swamp457Wooten350
Bethel456
TWO-TEACHER SCHOOLS
Contentnea620Smiths’485
McGowan600Hickory Grove479
Dunn572Oak Grove475
Airy Grove562Tyndall's465
Gilbert505Byrd450
Coahoma500Daly446
Mill branch500Oak View443
New Hope500Barwick420
Sandy Bottom500Aldridge276
THREE-TEACHER SCHOOLS
Farm Valley725Sharon477
Sand Hill625Woodington455
Grainger582Deep Run450
Institute482

FOUR-TEACHER SCHOOLS
Moss Hill600

MORE THAN FOUR-TEACHER SCHOOLS
Pink Hill520





Where the total score of a situation is less than fifty per cent of the standard, that is, less than 500 of the 1,000 points necessary to be a standard school in buildings, grounds and equipment, the only thing which can be done is to abandon the building for school purposes. An examination of the detailed scores given on building, site, grounds, both gross and internal structure, heating system, equipment, water supply, toilets, and other items, shows them totally inadequate, and that very meagre provisions are being made for the health, safety and education of the children attending these schools in Lenoir County.

There were in some instances a few items deserving special notice, such as pianos, single patent desks, and a few good pictures. These features were not, however, sufficient to offset certain necessary elements of a good school building. This is excellent proof of the value of the score card method of evaluating school situations. Not until all the items on the score card are considered can a proper evaluation be made.

Of the fifteen one-teacher schools listed above, only six or a little more than one-third score 500 points or more. The highest score is 740 points for the school at White's, and this is a fair situation, although lacking 260 points of being a standard school in regard to building, grounds and equipment. Nine buildings score less than 500 points and are in the class which should be abandoned for school purposes.

Of the eighteen two-teacher schools, nine, or one-half of the number, score less than 500 points, one building scoring as low as 276. Contentnea school scores 620 points, needing 380 points to be classed as standard. The Aldridge school scores 276, a situation about as low on the scale as it is possible to be and yet be dignified with the name of schoolhouse. Of this group only one building has the proper placement of windows for the best lighting purposes. This is the McGowan school, which is well arranged for lighting purposes. The White's school scores next highest on this point.

The seven three-teacher buildings are all far below the standard, except the Farm Valley and the new Sand Hill building. Five of these buildings should be abandoned for school purposes. Since the Sand Hill school is a temporary building, and not constructed by a standard plan, this leaves the Farm Valley school as the only three-room building which should be considered for permanent use.

The Moss Hill building of two rooms and two additions is most unattractive and ill-suited for school purposes. For hygienic arrangement, for health and comfort it falls far below what it should be. The school grounds and equipment are a little above average, and this fact increased the score to 600 points—the building and classrooms as separate items scoring only 247 points out of a possible 425.

The Pink Hill school scores 520 points as a ten-teacher school. For construction, for equipment and for adequacy of classroom space it lacks 480 points out of the 1,000 which it should score. This is not a situation to be proud of, but rather deplored, and one to be given careful consideration in order to care for the 386 children attending there.

Comparison of these two schools will easily bring to light the important elements in a school situation in regard to adequate grounds, well constructed buildings with well-kept and sufficient classrooms and necessary equipment. The Moss Hill school scores 80 points higher than the Pink Hill school for the reason that the building and equipment at Pink Hill is not adequate for taking care of the 386 pupils attending there.

Besides not having sufficient classrooms and equipment, this building on the interior is in bad condition and very ill-kept.

Here is a ten-teacher school, 386 pupils enrolled, a brick building with exterior walls in fair condition, but wholly inadequate in regard to classrooms and equipment for the needs of the pupils.

TO SUMMARIZE: There are 13 of the 42 buildings which score above 500 points of the possible 1,000 on the standard score card, leaving 29 buildings, or 69 per cent which are inadequate for school purposes. Only one one-room building, White's, one two-room building, Contentnea, and one three-room building, Farm Valley, score above 600 points, leaving 39 buildings lacking in 400 or more points out of a possible 1,000 given as necessary for adequate school purposes.

2. Description of the Buildings, Grounds and Equipment. (a) Buildings. The buildings as a rule are unsatisfactory in architecture, sanitation, heating, lighting, ventilation and other essentials that go to make up a satisfactory building for school purposes.

(1) Heating: All the buildings are heated by ordinary stoves. Some are good coal heaters and others are of tin or iron and furnishing insufficient heat. The stoves are usually placed in the center of the room, and with this placement of an unjacketed stove it is utterly impossible to keep all parts of the classroom evenly heated or in any way healthful or comfortable.

Most of the rooms have no provision for ventilation except by opening the windows from the bottom. It is necessary from a health standpoint to have a current of fresh air in the room where a large number of pupils remain for a length of time, and this should be provided for without having any child sit in a draft from an open window. A few of the buildings have the windows on cords, which arrangement affords the proper ventilation of the room by lowering the windows from the top.

(2) Lighting: One of the most serious defects in the rural school buildings of Lenoir County is the placement of the windows in the different classrooms. The window placement is far from the standard requirements. The McGowan school and the White's school are the only two with satisfactory lighting. In a number of classrooms there is not sufficient light, so that children can study without eye strain. The windows are not placed so there is no glare, no cross lights and no shadows on the pupil's desks. Regard for this important element in the structure of the building seemed to have been neglected.

A few of the buildings have shades at the windows, but most of them are cheap green shades, non-adjustable and practically of no value, and adding only to the dark appearance of the classrooms.

Modern standards say that the glass area should be not less than one-fifth of the size of the floor of the classroom, and where there is a great deal of shade the proportion should be one-fourth.

The light should come from the left side and the rear. The arrangement of the seats in a number of classrooms is such that the pupils sit with their backs to the side of the room with the larger number of windows, thus making it impossible to use the greatest amount of light available.

The colors on the walls affect both the amount of light and its quality. Too much light is absorbed if the walls are painted dark colors.

The walls in almost every instance in the forty-two rural schools, if painted at all, are of a color which darkens the room, giving at the same time a gloomy appearance. Some few are painted a cream or light buff, which is most desirable, but a large per cent are painted a very bright blue or a shade of green that is most trying on the eyes, and instead of softening the light in the room, produces a glare.

(3) Cleanliness: Only three of the schools of the county had the floors oiled, and very few scored high on cleanliness of buildings and grounds. In particular instances, the buildings and grounds were especially clean and well-kept





as at White's. In other instances porches, halls and classrooms were considerably below a reasonable standard of cleanliness.

(b) Grounds. According to recognized standards, two acres of land, at least, should be provided for the one-and two room schools, and a proportionate increase in size for three-, four- or more than four-room schools, depending upon the number of children enrolled in these schools. For the larger type school, from five to ten acres provides ample playground, space for school gardens and instruction in agriculture, affords the proper placing of building and outhouses, and the opportunity to beautify the surroundings by growing flowers, shrubs and planting shade trees. The most serious matter to be considered is the utter neglect to provide adequate play space. While a few of the rural schools are picturesque in their setting, surrounded by beautiful trees, as at Moss Hill and Oakdale, the larger number of them have only a small spot in front of the schoolhouse for play, with forest and underbrush crowding in on all sides as at Trent, Wheat Swamp, Taylors, Mill Branch, McGowan, Barwick, and others. Then again in a few instances the grounds are sufficient for play, but no trees for shade or to beautify the grounds are provided. The barrenness of such a situation is seen at Fairview, Farm Valley, Coahoma, Pink Hill and Lynwood.

The forty-two school buildings in the rural districts are listed here giving the area of school grounds for each building:

ONE-ROOM SCHOOLS
BethelNot anyFairfield1 acre
Wooten?Lynwood1 acre
White's½ acreFairview1 acre
Trent1 acreWaller1½ acres
Bland1 acreMaple Grove2 acres
Wheat Swamp1 acreTaylor2 acres
TWO-ROOM SCHOOLS
Gilbert's⅜ acreDunn1 acre
Hickory Grove½ acreContentnea1 acre
Airy Grove1 acreBarwick1 acre
Mill Branch1 acreOak View1½ acres
Aldridge1 acrePine Forest1½ acres
McGowan1 acreOakdale1¾ acres
Daly1 acreTyndall2 acres
New Hope1 acreSmith2 acres
Byrd1 acreOak Grove2 acres
Sandy Bottom1 acrePiney Grove2 acres
THREE-ROOM SCHOOLS
Institute½ acreSand Hill2 acres
Grainger½ acreDeep Run2 acres
Sharon1 acreCoahoma2 acres
Woodington2 acresFarm Valley3 acres

FOUR-ROOM SCHOOLS
Moss Hill3 acres

MORE THAN FOUR-ROOM SCHOOLS
Pink Hill4 acres

In the list given above it will readily be seen that the school grounds are almost wholly inadequate. Only two one-room schools have more than one acre, Maple Grove and Taylors, and at each of these there is not sufficient ground cleared for use.

Four of the twenty two-room schools have two acres in grounds, eleven schools have only one acre, and two schools more than one acre.

Institute and Grainger, two of the three-room schools, have each one-half acre, Sharon one acre, Woodington, Sand Hill, Deep Run and Coahoma each two acres, and Farm Valley three acres in grounds. Farm Valley is the only one of the eight three-room schools having a fair amount of space for play purposes, etc.

Moss Hill needs more cleared space for playground, and should have at least five or six acres in grounds. The grounds for the ten-teacher school, with 386 pupils enrolled at Pink Hill, should be ten acres in size for all needed purposes.

On the score card used figures are presented showing the ratings assigned to schools with respect to the general character of the school grounds, the location, accessibility and environment, the size, shape, drainage, slope of land, and nature of soil, as well as the condition and actual use made of the grounds. The complete score on these points for the rural schools is far from the standard, and in no instance is there an ideal situation which should give those in charge grave concern in the consideration of abandoning the whole project to accept a proposed plan for a larger school community which could afford the ideal situation in regard to the grounds and site.

(c) Equipment. Practically one-half of the schools are equipped with single patent desks selected and placed without thought to sizes needed for children of different ages. Usually there are two sizes in the building. The other desks used are of the old type of home-made double desks.

There are in almost ninety per cent of the schools teachers’ desks of a very good type, but very few supplies for the teacher's use.

There are a few maps and globes, but not a single chart for teaching reading in the primary grades, and practically no supplementary material for the grades in any school.

Blackboards are of great importance in class work. The blackboards in most of the schools are insufficient, usually one small strip tacked to the wall, without moulding around it for protection or chalk trays for convenience. The boards are usually placed too high for the smaller children to use well, and in the majority of the schools the boards are of painted fiber board and are in bad condition and unfit for use.

There is a small remnant of an original or supplementary library in a large number of the schools. Some of the books show signs of much use, some of abuse, and some are never used. The few books on hand are not suitable for the younger children, and there are very few, if any, of the more recent books on information and interesting subjects for boys and girls.

A few of the schools, about five or six, have bookcases in fair condition, and a small number of useful books for supplementary use.

There are good pianos and a remarkably good selection of well-framed pictures on the walls of some of the schools. The sixteen schools as follows have pianos: Deep Run, Coahoma, Hickory Grove, Sand Hill, Farm Valley, Grainger, Moss Hill, Institute, Oak View, Woodington, Sharon, Pink Hill, Daly, Gilbert, Barwick and Byrd.

The Grainger school has a fine selection of framed pictures for the walls—pictures well selected for the different rooms—primary, intermediate and grammar grades. Some attention has been given to the importance of having a few good pictures in each classroom, as shown by the selection in a number of schools.





OUTSIDE EQUIPMENT—(1) THE WATER SUPPLY, (2) TOILETS

Water Supply. The water supply at the majority of the schools is satisfactory, a good pump or overflow well on the grounds. There are a number of schools, however, with no supply of drinking water; the teacher and pupils depend on securing water from neighboring wells, often a distance from the school.

A condition which does not give children pure drinking water should not be tolerated in any school district, as this is an important factor in promoting the health of the child.

Toilets. At all schools, except where new toilets have recently been installed in a few schools, the condition is far from being sanitary, and in many cases the toilets are dilapidated and disreputable in appearance. The toilet system and the way in which it is cared for is of vital importance to the efficiency of the work of the school. They have a very direct influence upon the health and physical comfort of the pupils, and should in every case have the care and attention necessary to provide satisfactory sanitary and moral conditions.

Except where the new toilets were installed, the score on this item was very, very low—almost zero in several instances, where only one toilet for girls (not any for boys) was provided.

3. Description of the Individual Schools. In order to present a graphic picture of each separate school situation in the rural districts, a brief description giving the most important facts is given for each of the school buildings:

MAPLE GROVE SCHOOL

TEACHERS: One.

GROUNDS: Area, two acres; ample playground; clean and well-kept; open well on grounds; toilets in disreputable condition.

BUILDING: Value $300; one classroom and cloakroom; windows improperly placed; building in good condition, but unpainted; heated by a small stove; floors not oiled.

EQUIPMENT: Home-made double desks; bookcase and a few books; no teacher's desk and supplies; no maps; no pictures.

ORGANIZATION: One teacher; six months term; enrollment 22.

MAINTENANCE: $570 General School Fund; no special tax.





FAIRFIELD SCHOOL

TEACHERS: One.

GROUNDS: Area, one acre; playground ample, and in good condition; no playground apparatus; no flowers or shrubs; two new toilets of improved type.

BUILDING: Value $400; one classroom; no cloakroom; walls dingy and dark; needs painting inside; heated by stove; window panes out; floors not oiled and in bad condition; building needs painting outside, and porch needs repairing.

EQUIPMENT: Single patent desks; teacher's desk; insufficient amount of good blackboard; good stove; a globe; bookcase and library; pencil sharpener and dictionary; health charts; copies of Literary Digest and Saturday Evening Post.

ORGANIZATION: One teacher; seven grades; enrollment 46; present 41; no program posted; no clubs.

MAINTENANCE: $510 General School Fund; no local tax.

WHITE'S SCHOOL

TEACHERS: One.

GROUNDS: Area, one-half acre, well situated, well kept; shrubs near building; walks laid off; hard surface grounds for play; grounds need enlarging for play purposes; water supply from good pump; toilets of unimproved type.

BUILDING: Value $500; one classroom; well constructed; well lighted; well kept; paint colors both interior and exterior standard; a good all around situation for school purposes; cloakroom and blackboard sufficient.

EQUIPMENT: Single patent desks; teacher's desk; case of maps; good victrola; health charts; swinging lamp for use at community meetings held at night; good selection of pictures on walls; bookcase and good library.

ORGANIZATION: One teacher; six months term; enrollment 15; grades six; daily schedule posted; number recitations 26; length of class periods 15 minutes.

MAINTENANCE: $360 General School Fund; no special tax.





WOOTEN SCHOOL

TEACHERS: One.

GROUNDS: Area, (?) acres; situated in a wood, and practically no clearing to give sufficient playground; not well located.

BUILDING: Value $200; a small box-like structure unsuitable for school purposes; unpainted and unattractive; heated by small stove; hanging flues.

EQUIPMENT: Single patent desks; ample blackboards; no bookcase or library; no maps or globe; no charts or supplementary material for primary grades; no teacher's desk.

ORGANIZATION: One teacher; six grades; enrollment 19, present 18; no schedule posted; daily recitations 25; length of recitations 15 minutes; no clubs or other organizations.

MAINTENANCE: $270 General School Fund; no special tax.

PINEY GROVE SCHOOL

TEACHERS: One.

GROUNDS: Area, two acres; ample playground if a little attention was given to the care of it; water supply from a fairly good pump: one toilet in bad condition.

BUILDING: Value $550; two classrooms; not painted inside and in bad condition; cloakrooms used to store wood; floors not oiled; building dirty and ill-kept; heated by stove; uncomfortable and unattractive.

EQUIPMENT: Single patent desks; a library case; a few books; poor blackboards; no maps or globes.

ORGANIZATION: One teacher; six grades; enrollment 43, present 40; number recitations each day 25; length of recitation period, 14 minutes.

MAINTENANCE: $270 General School Fund; no local tax.





PINE FOREST SCHOOL

TEACHERS: One.

GROUNDS: One and one-half acres; ample playground, but not well kept; water supply from a very poor pump; one toilet in bad condition.

BUILDING: Value $450; two classrooms, only one in use; two cloakrooms; porch to the building; the whole structure needs repairing and painting, both interior and exterior of the building; windows improperly placed for good lighting.

EQUIPMENT: Home-made double desks; room heated by tin stove; practically no blackboards that are usable; bookcase, but no library.

ORGANIZATION: One teacher; seven grades; enrollment 43, present 38; number of recitation periods 27; length, 12 minutes to each class.

MAINTENANCE: $330 General School Fund; no local tax.

TAYLOR SCHOOL

TEACHERS: One.

GROUNDS: Area, two acres; very small area cleared; playgrounds not sufficient; water supply from pump; grounds unimproved and unattractive; not well kept.

BUILDING: Value $200; one classroom; cloakroom; window panes out; steps need repairing; windows not properly placed; ventilation and lighting very poor; floors not oiled; heated by stove; general arrangement of classrooms bad.

EQUIPMENT: Home-made double desks; no teacher's desk or supplies; no library; no maps; no globe; no charts for primary grades.

ORGANIZATION: One teacher; six months term; five grades; enrollment 25, present 23; daily recitations 25; length class periods, 15 minutes.

MAINTENANCE: $270 General School Fund; no special tax.





WHEAT SWAMP SCHOOL

TEACHERS: One.

GROUNDS: Area, one acre; playground needs enlarging and the grounds need to be improved; no shrubs or plants; water supply from fairly good pump; only one surface toilet (in bad condition); no toilet for boys.

BUILDING: Value $350; one room; no cloakroom; unpainted and unattractive; floors not oiled; heated by small stove; window placement not satisfactory for best lighting purposes.

EQUIPMENT: Home-made double desks; blackboard insufficient; no charts or equipment for teaching primary grades; a globe; bookcase and a few books; a good selection of pictures on walls.

ORGANIZATION: One teacher; six months term; grades six; enrollment 34, present 23; recitations per day 31; length of class periods 12 minutes; literary society organized; no community organizations.

MAINTENANCE: $450 General School Fund; no special tax.

BETHEL SCHOOL

TEACHERS: One.

GROUNDS: Area, .... acres; grounds and building belong to the Masons; no attempt to improve grounds; fine shade trees; toilet for girls (improved type and in good condition); no water supply on grounds.

BUILDING: A two story building owned by the Masons, the lower floor used for school purposes; classroom lighted from three sides; windows not properly placed; interior painting good color; floor not clean and not oiled; building not well kept.

EQUIPMENT: Single patent desks; teacher's desk; library and a few good books; standard dictionary; large United States flag; good selection of pictures; a globe; no charts or supplementary material for primary grades.

ORGANIZATION: One teacher; six months term; seven grades; no clubs or organizations; daily schedule; number of recitations 27; length of class periods 15 minutes; enrollment 24, present 21.

MAINTENANCE: $425 General School Fund; $200 local tax fund.





FAIRVIEW SCHOOL

TEACHERS: One.

GROUNDS: Area, one acre; situated off the road in open field; no shade trees; ample playground; unimproved; no attempt to make attractive; grown up in grass and weeds; water supply from pump; one toilet of old type, which should be removed from grounds.

BUILDING: Value $250; one classroom; cloakroom; building very dilapidated in appearance; windows not properly placed for best lighting; heated by coal stove; floors not oiled; paint colors on interior undesirable.

EQUIPMENT: Single patent desks; teacher's desk; good collection of pictures; well framed; schoolroom attractive inside and well arranged.

ORGANIZATION: One teacher; six months school term; seven grades; enrollment 30, present 27; daily recitations 35; length of class periods 12 minutes; no clubs or community organizations.

MAINTENANCE: $330 General School Fund; no special tax.

TRENT SCHOOL

TEACHERS: One.

GROUNDS: Area, one acre; grounds unimproved and neglected; playground not sufficient; the building situated in the woods; one toilet, bad condition.

BUILDING: Value $400; one classroom poorly lighted and not well ventilated; floors not oiled and in bad condition around stove; walls dark and unpainted.

EQUIPMENT: Home-made double desks; no teacher's desk; bookcase and library; no shades; blackboards insufficient; globe and one map; no charts or supplementary material for primary grades.

ORGANIZATION: One teacher; enrollment 13, present 9; four grades; recitations 34; length of class periods 10.

MAINTENANCE: $300 General School Fund; no local tax.





LYNWOOD SCHOOL

TEACHERS: One.

GROUNDS: Area, one acre; the playground would be ample if cleared of a heavy growth of stubble; unimproved; no shrubs or shade trees; toilets not screened from view and in bad condition.

BUILDING: Value $400; one classroom; a cloakroom; walls unpainted; floors not oiled; heated by a stove; windows not properly placed; no shades; lighting insufficient.

EQUIPMENT: One-half patent desks, the rest home-made double desks; open water bucket; clock; bookcase; a few books; blackboards insufficient; no charts for primary grades.

ORGANIZATION: One teacher; term six months; enrollment 14; four grades.

MAINTENANCE: $270 General School Fund; no local tax.

OAKDALE SCHOOL

TEACHERS: One.

GROUNDS: Area, one and three-fourths acres; grounds unimproved and not well kept; coal pile at front door; toilets near building and not screened from view; beautiful shade trees; not sufficient playground.

BUILDING: Value $700; two classrooms, only one in use; one cloakroom partitioned; building in fairly good repair; heated by good stove; room well kept; mat under stove; floors oiled and seats well arranged; general appearance good.

EQUIPMENT: Single patent desks; teacher's desk; good library and bookcase; good selection of framed pictures; globe and map; fairly good black boards; metal foot mat on porch.

ORGANIZATION: One teacher; six months school term; six grades; enrollment 19.

MAINTENANCE: $330 General School Fund; $60 local tax.





BLAND SCHOOL

TEACHERS: One.

GROUNDS: Area, one acre; playground would be ample if well kept; trees on grounds; toilets not screened from view; in bad condition.

BUILDING: Value $200; one classroom; unpainted and in poor condition; broken panel in door; floors clean, but not oiled; windows not well placed; general appearance unattractive.

EQUIPMENT: Home-made double desks; teacher's table; one strip of blackboard; bookcase and library; a dictionary; pictures of Washington and Lee; no cloakroom; heated by a stove.

ORGANIZATION: One teacher; six grades; enrollment 29, present 24; number of recitations 46; length of class periods 10 minutes; no clubs for boys and girls or men and women.

MAINTENANCE: $270 General School Fund; no local tax.

WALLER SCHOOL

TEACHERS: One.

GROUNDS: Area, one and one-half acres; playground not sufficient, needs cleaning off and improving; small place around door all that is cleared.

BUILDING: Value $200; one classroom in fair condition; heated by a stove; floors clean but not oiled; walls painted a dark color; needs new paint; one cloakroom.

EQUIPMENT: Home-made double desks; insufficient blackboard; no teacher's desk; no map and globe; two pictures on walls; new bookcase and small library; an organ.

ORGANIZATION: One teacher; six months term; enrollment 29; six grades.

MAINTENANCE: $270 General School Fund; no local tax.





ALDRIDGE SCHOOL

TEACHERS: Two.

GROUNDS: Area, one acre; grounds unimproved and not well kept; trash around door; playgrounds should be cleared of trash and underbrush; one toilet in very bad condition; no water supply on school grounds.

BUILDING: Value $400; two classrooms; no cloakrooms; walls dark; lighting insufficient; floors not clean and not oiled; whole general appearance insanitary and unfit for school purposes. It should be improved or abandoned at once.

EQUIPMENT: A few single patent desks and home-made double desks; small blackboard in bad condition; teachers’ desks, but no supplies; no maps or globe; two good pictures on walls; a bookcase and a few books in bad condition.

ORGANIZATION: Two teachers; six months term; enrollment 48; seven grades.

MAINTENANCE: $686 General School Fund; no special tax.

TYNDALL SCHOOL

TEACHERS: Two.

GROUND: Area, two acres; grounds clean; home-made apparatus for play purposes; water supply from pump; new toilets being erected; flower beds planted.

BUILDING: Value $500; two classrooms; heated by stoves; one room practically new; one room needs repairs on ceiling; both need painting inside; connecting doors between rooms; well kept, but floors not oiled; unattractive in general appearance.

EQUIPMENT: Home-made double desks; bookcase and a few books; a globe and maps; no chart or supplementary material for primary grades; no dictionary.

ORGANIZATION: Two teachers; six grades; six months term; enrollment 64, present 44; no schedule posted; average number recitations per teacher 20; average length class periods 15 minutes; literary society for boys and girls; no community clubs.

MAINTENANCE: $780 General School Fund; no special tax.





COAHOMA SCHOOL

TEACHERS: Two.

GROUNDS: Area, two acres; cleared of weeds; needs leveling for play purposes; no water supply on school grounds; two surface toilets (condition not very good); no shrubs or shade trees; no attempt to beautify the grounds.

BUILDING: Value $750; general appearance bad; roof needs painting; porch floors and steps need repairing; front window boarded up; three rooms, but only two in use; badly lighted and ventilated; heated by small stoves.

EQUIPMENT: Single patent desks of proper sizes for children; piano; pictures well selected and framed; flags on the walls; teachers’ desks and a few supplies; no library; no reference books; no charts for primary grades.

ORGANIZATION: Two teachers; six months term; seven grades; enrollment 49, present 43; no schedules posted; boys’ and girls’ literary society organized.

MAINTENANCE: $780 General School Fund; no special tax.

BYRD SCHOOL

TEACHERS: Two.

GROUNDS: Area, one acre; well situated; shade trees; near road; grounds unimproved; playground not sufficient; general appearance shows lack of proper care; water supply from good pump.

BUILDING: Value $500; two classrooms; cloakrooms; windows not properly placed; not well kept; heated by stoves; floors not clean and not oiled; unpainted and unattractive.

EQUIPMENT: Home made double desks; teachers’ desks; bookcase and small library; good selection of pictures on walls; a map and globe; no charts or supplies for primary grades.

ORGANIZATION: Two teachers; seven grades; enrollment 78, present 72; average number daily recitations per teacher 20; average length class period 20 minutes; woman's club of 16 members.

MAINTENANCE: $720 General School Fund; $60 local tax fund.





HICKORY GROVE SCHOOL

TEACHERS: Two.

GROUNDS: Area, one-half acre; ground unimproved; not sufficient playground; overflow water supply; water stands on yard around water spigot; toilets near school building and not screened from view; in fair condition.

BUILDING: Value $700; two classrooms; two cloakrooms; walls need painting; floors not oiled; blackboards insufficient; heating arrangements in bad condition.

EQUIPMENT: Single patent desks; teachers’ desks; piano; bookcase and a few books; no charts; no sand tables or other supplies.

ORGANIZATION: Two teachers; six months term; seven grades; enrollment 56.

MAINTENANCE: $660 General School Fund; $60 local tax fund.

AIRY GROVE SCHOOL

TEACHERS: Two.

GROUNDS: Area, one acre; ground unimproved; some shade; flag pole; water supply from neighbor's well; general appearance shows neglect.

BUILDING: Value $700; two classrooms; two cloakrooms; paint colors not good; makes room too dark and unattractive; floors clean, but not oiled; general appearance on outside fairly good; windows not properly placed.

EQUIPMENT: Single patent desks; teachers’ desks; a globe; map; few good pictures well framed; United States flags on the wall; blackboards insufficient for class work.

ORGANIZATION: Two teachers; grades 7; enrollment 43, present 41; literary club for boys and girls; no community organizations; program of work followed; average number of recitations per teacher 19; average length of class period 15 minutes.

MAINTENANCE: $900 General School Fund; $60 local tax fund.





MILL BRANCH SCHOOL

TEACHERS: Two.

GROUNDS: Area, one acre; small playground, unimproved; covered in weeds and bushes; water supply from pump with good drain; toilets in bad condition and not secluded; a few shade trees.

BUILDING: Value $400; a one-room building divided into classrooms by a thin partition; rooms poorly lighted; pupils seated with backs to the windows; walls dark; window panes out; building not well kept; floors not oiled; no cloakrooms; heating arrangement unsafe; general appearance bad.

EQUIPMENT: Home-made double desks in one room, single desks in other; fairly good blackboards; no teachers’ desks; no supplies; a bookcase and a few books; no pictures; no maps; no globes.

ORGANIZATION: Two teachers; six months term; seven grades; enrollment 59, present 36; number recitation periods in primary grades 25; length 12 minutes; number recitation periods in grammar grades 22; length 17 minutes; daily schedule posted.

MAINTENANCE: $960 General School Fund; no special tax.

DALY SCHOOL

TEACHERS: Two.

GROUNDS: Area, one acre; grounds insufficient for play purposes; not well kept; undergrowth not cleared away; some good shade trees; toilets not screened from view and in bad condition; water supply from pump, which was broken.

BUILDING: Value $450; two classrooms; windows on three sides of rooms; building in very bad condition; poorly constructed temporary cloakrooms in center of porch; not well kept; floors not clean and not oiled; wood on floor; no mat under stove; window panes out; building should be abandoned, as it is not suitable for school purposes.

EQUIPMENT: About one-half single patent desks and one-half home-made double desks; one good desk for teacher; a piano and good pictures on the walls; no charts or supplementary material for primary grades.

ORGANIZATION: Two teachers; six months school term; seven grades; enrollment 63; no program posted.

MAINTENANCE: $1,549.98 General School Fund; $128.42 local tax fund.





OAK GROVE SCHOOL

TEACHERS: Two.

GROUNDS: Area, two acres; grounds unimproved; beautiful grove of oak trees; well situated but not well kept; water supply from good pump; toilets in bad condition.

BUILDING: Value $500; two classrooms; cloakrooms; house needs repairing; roof, porch and ceiling in bad condition; color of paint makes classrooms dark and unattractive; building old and unpainted; heated by stoves; blackboards insufficient.

EQUIPMENT: Home-made desks; organ; bookcase and a few books; a globe and map; no charts or supplementary material for primary grades; no pictures; no sand table.

ORGANIZATION: Two teachers; six months term; seven grades; enrollment 78, present 72; daily recitations in primary grades 18; length of class periods fifteen minutes; daily recitations in grammar grades 26; length of class periods 13 minutes; no clubs for boys and girls or community.

MAINTENANCE: $660 General School Fund; no special tax.

OAK VIEW SCHOOL

TEACHERS: Two.

GROUNDS: Area, one and one-half acres; ample playground if cleared; no attempt to improve the grounds; no water supply on school grounds; two toilets of improved type, in good condition and properly screened.

BUILDING: Value $600; three classrooms, only two in use; walls dark and dingy; lighting insufficient; building not well kept; floors not oiled; heated by stoves with smoking flues; general appearance unattractive.

EQUIPMENT: Single patent desks; no teachers’ desks; no supplies; no bookcase or library; no dictionary; no maps or globe; no pictures; a piano; blackboards insufficient.

ORGANIZATION: Two teachers; six grades; enrollment 45; no clubs organized; daily schedules followed but not posted.

MAINTENANCE: $840 General School Fund; $60 local tax fund.





NEW HOPE SCHOOL

TEACHERS: Two.

GROUNDS: Area, one acre; grounds need attention; weeds should be cleared away; water supplied from good pump; good shade available by clearing larger space for grounds.

BUILDING: Value $600; two classrooms; building needs repairing and painting; cloakrooms; inside well kept; neat and clean; floors oiled; desks well arranged.

EQUIPMENT: Home-made double desks and some single desks; blackboards insufficient; maps and globes; bookcase and a few books; teachers’ desks and no supplies; two well selected and well framed pictures on walls; sand table for primary grades; no charts for primary grades.

ORGANIZATION: Two teachers; six months term; enrollment 44.

MAINTENANCE: $780 General School Fund; no special tax.

CONTENTNEA SCHOOL.

TEACHERS: Two.

GROUNDS: Area, one acre; unimproved; should be enlarged to give ample playground; no shrubs or plants; water supply from good pumps; toilets of old type and in bad condition.

BUILDING: Value $700; two classrooms; cloakrooms; porch on front; all in fair condition; interior painted good color; building well kept; floors not oiled; lighting and ventilating very good; window placement could be improved; heated by stoves with hanging flues.

EQUIPMENT: Single patent desks; recitation benches; teachers’ desks; sand tables; waste basket; pencil sharpener; bookcase and good library; maps and a globe; good selection of pictures; no charts or material for primary grades.

ORGANIZATION: Two teachers; six months school term; enrollment 33, present 30; grades 7; daily schedules posted; number recitations in primary grades 20; length of class period 15 minutes; number recitations in grammar grades 16; length of class periods 18 minutes; no clubs for boys or girls or community organization.

MAINTENANCE: $810 General School Fund; $330 local tax fund.





BARWICK SCHOOL

TEACHERS: Two.

GROUNDS: Area, one acre; playground insufficient; beautiful shade trees; grounds unimproved; water supply from pump without proper drain; no shrubs; two surface toilets.

BUILDING: Value $500; two classrooms; cloakrooms; building needs painting; general appearance unattractive; floors not oiled; wood on floor near stove; no shades; windows not properly placed; heating arrangement unsatisfactory.

EQUIPMENT: Single patent desks; bookcases and $60 library (new); maps and globe; good selection of well-framed pictures; piano; no charts and supplementary material for primary grades.

ORGANIZATION: Two teachers; eight months term; seven grades; enrollment 34, present 29; schedule of recitations; literary society organized; no community organization.

MAINTENANCE: $720 General School Fund; $60 local tax fund.

SMITH SCHOOL

TEACHERS: Two.

GROUNDS: Area, two acres; playground ample if cleared of brush; fine shade and well drained yard; wood pile in front view; no attempt to improve grounds; toilet in very bad condition.

BUILDING: Value $600; two classrooms very poorly constructed; heated by stoves; not properly lighted or ventilated; floors clean but not oiled; no wood box; wood on floor near stoves; paint color not good.

EQUIPMENT: Home-made double desks; blackboards are needed; no supplies for teachers’ desks; library case and a few books; no supplementary reading; no charts; a map and a globe; two good pictures; a large United States flag on the walls.

ORGANIZATION: Two teachers; seven grades; six months term; enrollment 66; no community organizations.

MAINTENANCE: $830 General School Fund; no special tax.





SANDY BOTTOM SCHOOL

TEACHERS: Two.

GROUNDS: Area, one acre; playgrounds on church yard; school grounds inadequate; beautiful shade and clean grounds on which to play; water supply excellent; two surface toilets in bad condition.

BUILDING: Value $500; two classrooms in fair condition; no cloakroom; window placement not satisfactory for proper lighting; porch across front of building needs repair; house needs painting; general arrangement of classrooms unsatisfactory.

EQUIPMENT: Single patent desks and a few home-made double desks in use; map and globe; library and a few books; no charts or supplementary readers; additional blackboard needed.

ORGANIZATION: Two teachers; six months term; six grades; enrollment 44, present 44; number recitations in each room 17; average length of class periods 18 minutes; literary society for boys and girls; no community organizations.

MAINTENANCE: $1,020 General School Fund; no local tax.

MCGOWAN SCHOOL

TEACHERS: Two.

GROUNDS: Area, one acre; very small playgrounds unimproved; extensive growth of underbrush which could be cleared; good shade trees.

BUILDING: Value $800; two rooms with sliding partition; condition fair; building clean; one of two buildings in the county with proper placement of windows; two cloakrooms well placed and ventilated.

EQUIPMENT: Single patent and double home-made desks; teachers’ desks and practically no other equipment as maps, globes, pictures, charts, sand tables and dictionaries; the blackboards and library are insufficient.

ORGANIZATION: Two teachers; six months school term; seven grades; enrollment 43.

MAINTENANCE: $690 General School Fund: no special tax.





DUNN SCHOOL

TEACHERS: Two.

GROUNDS: Area, one acre; playgrounds clean; not room for ball ground or basketball court; could be enlarged; well drained and hard surface; background of beautiful pines; no shade trees or shrubs in front; no attempt to improve grounds; covered water cooler; get water from a neighbor's well; toilets in bad condition—one disreputable.

BUILDING: Value $900; two classrooms; two cloakrooms; connecting doors; floors fairly clean but not oiled; heated by stoves placed in center of room; not painted inside; window placement not good.

EQUIPMENT: Single patent desks; teachers’ desks; a globe; no maps or charts; picture of Robert E. Lee; recitation benches; no supplementary material for primary grades; insufficient blackboards.

ORGANIZATION: Two teachers; school term six months; seven grades; enrollment 68, present 56; daily schedule in classroom; no clubs; no community organization.

MAINTENANCE: $900 General School Fund; $220 local tax fund.

GILBERT SCHOOL

TEACHERS: Two.

GROUNDS: Area, three-eighths of an acre; grounds cleared and an attempt to improve; for playground purposes needs enlargement; water supply from pump; one toilet of old type, and not screened from view.

BUILDING: Value $700; new building; two classrooms; cloakrooms; newly painted; floors oiled; building well kept; folding doors in between rooms; window placement not satisfactory for lighting purposes.

EQUIPMENT: Single patent and home-made double desks; piano; bookcase and a few books; a globe and maps; pictures well framed and very well selected; no charts or supplies for primary grades.

ORGANIZATION: Two teachers; six months term; seven grades; enrollment 53, present 49; daily recitations in primary room 28; length of class periods 10 minutes; daily recitations in grammar grade 17; length of class periods 20 minutes; literary club for boys and girls; School Betterment Association.

MAINTENANCE: $1,020 General School Fund; $60 local tax fund.





FARM VALLEY SCHOOL

TEACHERS: Three.

GROUNDS: Area, three acres; ample playgrounds; splendid situation; basket ball court equipped; no other play apparatus; overflow well on lot; no attempt to beautify grounds by shrubs or plants; two shade trees; no school garden; toilets in fair condition, but not screened from view; flagpole on grounds.

BUILDING: Value $1,500; practically a new building in good condition; painted inside and out, but not well kept; needs cleaning and floors need oiling; three classrooms and ample cloakrooms; windows not properly placed for best lighting; heated by stoves.

EQUIPMENT: Single patent desks; teachers’ desks; good blackboards; globes; two good pictures; no charts or supplementary material for the primary grades; bookcase and library; piano.

ORGANIZATION: Three teachers; ten grades; eight months term; enrollment 78, present 68; daily schedules not posted; average number recitations 20; average length class periods 18 minutes; literary society; no community clubs.

MAINTENANCE: $1,530.20 General School Fund; $627 local tax fund.

SHARON SCHOOL

TEACHERS: Three.

GROUNDS: Area, one acre; playgrounds not sufficient; grounds not well kept; some shade trees; one toilet in bad condition; building too near road; not well placed on grounds.

BUILDING: Value $800; three classrooms; no auditorium; sliding doors between two rooms; windows improperly placed; one cloakroom; heated by stoves; mats under stoves; floors clean and oiled.

EQUIPMENT: Single patent desks in two rooms; home-made double desks in one room; teachers’ desks; piano and well selected pictures; practically no library; no maps and globes.

ORGANIZATION: Three teachers; nine grades; enrollment 45, present 43; number recitations for three teachers 60; average length of recitation 17 minutes; music class organized; boys’ and girls’ club; community club.

MAINTENANCE: $1,087 General School Fund; $359.25 local tax fund.





DEEP RUN SCHOOL

TEACHERS: Three.

GROUNDS: Area, two acres; ample playground if improved; no shrubs or shade trees; basketball court; good pump on grounds; toilets in fairly good condition; general appearance of grounds could be improved by clearing away underbrush.

BUILDING: Value $600; in bad condition; need repairing; rooms dark; floors clean but not oiled; heated by small stoves; very unsafe; not well ventilated; color of paint too dark; one cloakroom for the three rooms; windows not properly placed.

EQUIPMENT: Single patent desks; piano; blackboards insufficient; no libraries; no charts, maps or globes; no reference books or material for supplementary work.

ORGANIZATION: Three teachers; six months term; seven grades; enrollment 119; present 109; average number recitations per teacher 20; average length of class periods per teacher 12 minutes; literary club organized; no community organization.

MAINTENANCE: $1,371 General School Fund; no special tax.

SAND HILL SCHOOL

TEACHERS: Three.

GROUNDS: Area, two acres; grounds being improved; basketball courts; shelter for horses and autos; home-made playground apparatus; good shade; one toilet for girls (old type of toilet and in bad condition); water supply from pump.

BUILDING: Value $1,250; a new building of three classrooms for temporary use; arrangement of rooms and lighting not approved for permanent use; building unpainted; folding doors between rooms; no cloakrooms.

EQUIPMENT: Single patent desks; piano; new blackboards, but inadequate for class use; no maps, globes or pictures; bookcase and a few books; no supplementary readers or charts for primary grades; United States flags in the room.

ORGANIZATION: Three teachers; ten grades; six months school term; enrollment 94, present 88; daily schedules posted; literary society for boys and girls; no community organizations.

MAINTENANCE: $1,524 General School Fund; $60 local tax fund.





WOODINGTON SCHOOL

TEACHERS: Three.

GROUNDS: Area, two acres: basketball court; other space not sufficient for play purposes; good slope and good shade; no attempt to improve or make the grounds attractive.

BUILDING: Value $900; three classrooms; cloakrooms; interior of building well kept; needs painting; floors not oiled; heated by small stoves; general appearance of building unattractive; needs repairing and painting; lighting and ventilation unsatisfactory.

EQUIPMENT: Single patent desks; teachers’ desks; piano; bookcase and a very few books; maps and globes; good pictures well framed; no charts or supplementary material for primary grades; blackboard insufficient.

ORGANIZATION: Three teachers; grades 10; enrollment 84, present 83; no schedule posted; no clubs organized.

MAINTENANCE: $1,035 General School Fund; $90 local tax fund.

GRAINGER SCHOOL

TEACHERS: Three.

GROUNDS: Area, one-half acre; shrubs; plants and grounds given no attention; no attempt to improve conditions; general appearance unattractive and conditions insanitary; open and unused well on grounds; water supply from a neighboring well; two new toilets of an improved type, but not screened from view.

BUILDING: Value $700; three classrooms connected by sliding doors; unpainted inside; boards in bad condition; floors not oiled; rooms not well kept; porch on front in need of repairs; rooms heated by stoves; all doors swing inward.

EQUIPMENT: Single patent desks; teachers’ desks; piano; a fine collection of pictures well framed; no shades; no charts for primary grades; no supplementary material.

ORGANIZATION: Three teachers; six months term; ten grades; enrollment 67; Parent-Teacher Association; no clubs for boys and girls.

MAINTENANCE: $960 General School Fund; $210 local tax fund.





INSTITUTE SCHOOL

TEACHERS: Three.

GROUNDS: Area, one-half acre; playground too small; situated near a large grove and churchyard, which is used for play purposes; no attempt to improve grounds; not well kept; water supply satisfactory.

BUILDING: Value $600; three classrooms and a cloakroom; not well arranged for school purposes; needs painting inside; windows not properly placed; whole appearance unattractive, and building not well kept; floors not oiled; heating arrangement unsafe.

EQUIPMENT: Single patent desks; no teachers’ desks or supplies; no maps or globe; bookcase and a few books; good selection of pictures on walls; piano; blackboards in bad condition.

ORGANIZATION: Three teachers; ten grades; enrollment 68, present 50; no clubs organized.

MAINTENANCE: $900 General School Fund; $225 local tax fund.

MOSS HILL SCHOOL

TEACHERS: Four.

GROUNDS: Area, three acres; beautiful location; fine shade; good water supply; grounds well kept; basketball court; two toilets in good condition.

BUILDING: Value $800; four classrooms; no cloakrooms; heated by stoves; needs painting on inside; present color not good; fairly well kept; floors clean but not oiled; lighting not satisfactory; window placement could be improved.

EQUIPMENT: Single patent desks; teachers’ desks; bookcases and a few books; piano; a globe and maps; no charts or supplementary material for primary grades.

ORGANIZATION: Four teachers; eleven grades; enrollment 130, present 117; literary society for boys and girls; school betterment association.

MAINTENANCE: $1,757.85 General School Fund; $366.50 local tax fund.





PINK HILL SCHOOL

TEACHERS: Ten.

GROUNDS: Area, four acres; grounds need improving; no shade trees; no shrubs; grounds in rear of building in bad condition and need clearing up; basketball court; water supply from one pump for 386 children.

BUILDING: Value $3,000; classrooms insufficient; auditorium divided into classrooms with temporary partitions; poorly arranged; in bad condition; needs repairing and painting; not an attractive situation for school purposes.

EQUIPMENT: Single and double patent and home-made double desks; heated by small stoves; teachers’ desks with no supplies; library not sufficient for elementary grades; no pictures; poor blackboards.

ORGANIZATION: Ten teachers; eleven grades; enrollment 386, present 301; no clubs for boys and girls.

MAINTENANCE: $5,725.31 General School Fund; $658.43 local tax fund; $1,250 State appropriation.

Summary. Twenty-nine or 69 per cent of the school buildings in the rural districts of Lenoir County are inadequate for school purposes. They are unsatisfactory in architecture, sanitation, heating, lighting, ventilation and other essentials that go to make up a satisfactory school building. Each of the forty-two schools was personally investigated and the score card method of accumulating facts was used. The score card gives 1,000 points as the standard for any school. Where the total score of a situation is less than fifty per cent of the standard; that is, less than 500 of the 1,000 points necessary to be a standard school in building, grounds and equipment, the only thing which can be done is to abandon the building for school purposes. On examination of the detailed scores given on building, both gross and internal structure, site, grounds, lighting, heating system, equipment, water supply, toilets and other items, shows them totally inadequate.

The other 13 buildings score above the 500 points, but are far from the standard, the best of the buildings scoring only 75 per cent of the 1,000 points.

Of the fifteen one-teacher schools three-fifths or 60 per cent score below 500 points. Fifty per cent of the two-teacher schools score less than 500 points, one building scoring as low as 276 points of a possible 1,000 points. Only two of the thirty-three one- and two-teacher schools have the proper placement of windows for the best lighting purposes. Five of the seven three-teacher schools fall short of being even 50 per cent adequate for school purposes.

The average cash value of the fifteen one-teacher schools is $340. The average for the two-teacher schools is $600. The total estimated value of the forty-two rural schools is $26,050, or an average of $620 per building. Leaving out the Pink Hill building, the average is $550. Over 50 per cent of the one- and two-teacher schools are equipped with old-fashioned home-made double desks.

The results from the investigation and the scoring of the buildings justify the conclusion that very meagre provision is being made for the health, safety and education of the pupils attending these schools.

According to recognized standards, two acres of land, at least, should be provided for the one- and two-teacher schools, and a proportionate increase in size for the larger schools, depending upon the enrollment. Eighty per cent of the one-teacher and seventy-seven per cent of the two-teacher schools have less than two acres of ground for the school site. Only one of the seven three-teacher schools has as much as three acres. Two of the seven have one-half acre only. The average for the forty-two schools is one and one third acres.

On the score card used, figures are presented showing the ratings assigned to schools with respect to the general character of the grounds, the location, accessibility and environment, the size, shape, drainage, slope of land, nature of soil, and the condition and actual use made of the grounds. The complete score on these points for the rural schools is far from the standard.

The situation in regard to buildings, grounds and equipment is, as a whole, far from being satisfactory.





CHAPTER XII
HOW MUCH IS IT COSTING TO TEACH A PUPIL IN THE
RURAL SCHOOLS OF THE COUNTY?

In previous chapters we have discussed the amount and the quality of instruction received by the pupils in the rural schools. Here we are to consider the monthly and daily cost of teaching these pupils. Since by far the largest item in current expenditures for schools is that expended for teachers’ salaries, we are limiting the discussion here to the cost of teaching alone.

I. HOW MUCH IS IT COSTING TO TEACH A PUPIL IN THE ONE-
TEACHER SCHOOLS OF THE COUNTY?

TABLE 63—Showing—
Name of SchoolNumber TeachersTotal Salary Paid TeachersAverage Monthly Salary Paid TeachersLength of School Term in DaysNumber Pupils Per Teacher in Daily AttendanceMonthly Cost of Teaching Per Pupil in Daily AttendanceDaily Cost of Teaching Per Pupil in Daily Attendance
Cents
Bethel1$ 625.00$ 125.0010021$ 5.9529.8
Fairview1360.0060.00120252.4012
Piney Grove1270.0045.00120271.678.4
Bland1270.0045.00120153.0015
Pine Forest1330.0055.00120262.1210.6
Taylor1270.0045.00120261.738.7
Wooten1270.0045.00120212.1410.7
Trent1312.7552.13120124.3421.7
Fairfield1510.0085.00120283.0415.2
White's1360.0060.00120106.0030
Oakdale1360.0060.00120183.3316.7
Wheat Swamp1487.5075.00130243.1315.7
Waller1270.0045.00120162.8114
Maple Grove1570.0095.00120263.6518.3
Lynwood1270.0045.00120123.7518.8

(1) From the foregoing table it will be seen that the daily cost of teaching per pupil in daily attendance in the one-teacher schools of the county ranges from 8.4 cents in the Piney Grove school to 30 cents in White's school.

(2) In three of the white one-teacher schools, or 20 per cent of them, the daily cost of teaching each pupil in daily attendance is above 21 cents. In the Trent school 21.7 cents, in the Bethel school 29.8 cents, in White's school 30 cents. This means that the daily cost of teaching a pupil in daily attendance in the Bethel school, and in the Trent school is more than three times the daily cost of teaching a pupil in daily attendance in the Piney Grove school.

(3) The high cost of teaching a pupil in daily attendance may be due either to a high salaried teacher or to a small number of pupils in daily attendance. On the other hand a low daily cost for teaching each pupil may be due either to a low salaried teacher or to a large number of pupils for each teacher, or to both.

(4) It will be observed from the table that the high cost of teaching each pupil in daily attendance at the White's school is not due to a high salaried teacher. This teacher is paid $60 per month for a school term of six months only. The salary is far below the State's salary schedule for a teacher who holds a teacher's certificate above an elementary. The salary hence is low—too low to keep for these pupils a teacher with a certificate above an elementary. The high cost of instruction in this school then arises from the small number of pupils in daily attendance, this number being 10. This number is entirely too small to occupy the time of a teacher. In 1915 in a group of 21 representative city systems of America the average number of pupils per teacher in daily attendance changed from 21.7 to 40.3, the average for these 21 representative school systems being 31. In this State the law requires an average daily attendance of 30 pupils in daily attendance before a second teacher can be employed from the county salary fund, and in counties receiving aid from the State Equalizing Fund there must be as many as 38 pupils in daily attendance before the second teacher can be employed. Therefore the 10 pupils in average daily attendance is not even one-third the average number of pupils per teacher in daily attendance in these representative school systems throughout America, and this number is just one third the number a teacher must have in this State before the second teacher is employed.

(5) There are two ways whereby the pupils in White's community can reduce the relatively high cost of teaching per pupil. One is to reduce this already comparatively low salary of $60 per month for a whole term of six months down to the level of a real second-grade teacher, while the other way is to increase the number of pupils in daily attendance. The first plan would simply be suicidal to the best interests of the children, and no sensible citizen in the neighborhood would stand for this policy. The intelligent parent wants the best teacher he can get; wants one who holds a State Certificate. The second plan, that of increasing considerably the number of pupils in daily attendance, is an impracticable one for the reason that the total school population in the district is not large enough to provide a daily attendance of a considerable number over the present school population. Therefore since the first way out suggested would be suicidal, and the second is wholly impracticable, there seems no way under the present system whereby the citizens of the community can escape this high daily cost of teaching their children. And even the present high cost of teaching per pupil will increase in proportion as the parents demand higher qualifications of those who teach their children.

(6) In the Piney Grove school the daily cost per pupil is 8.4 cents. The average number of pupils in daily attendance is 27. In number of pupils in daily attendance this school more nearly approaches the normal number for one teacher. The annual salary paid the teacher, however, is only $270 for a school term of six months, or a monthly salary of $45. On the face of it it may appear to the citizens of this community that they are getting their children educated “monstrously” cheap at 8.4 cents a head. But are they? The teacher who is doing the teaching has not gone beyond the ninth grade in her education and training. Her daily schedule shows that she is hearing 41 classes a day. This means that the pupils are having less than nine minutes for each lesson they recite. In consideration of the education and training of the teacher, and her 41 classes, and less than nine minutes for each class, it may appear to the citizens of this community that instead of getting education for their children “monstrously” cheap, that it is costing “powerful” high in proportion to the quality and quantity of instruction the pupils are receiving, though the teacher in all probability is doing her best





to succeed. But what are the citizens of the community to do about it? In proportion as they demand a higher education and better professional training of their teacher in that proportion will the daily cost of teaching her pupil rise in the scale.

II. HOW MUCH IS IT COSTING TO TEACH A PUPIL IN THE TWO-
TEACHER SCHOOLS OF THE COUNTY?

TABLE 64—Showing—
Name of SchoolNumber TeachersTotal Salary Paid TeachersAverage Monthly Salary Paid TeachersLength School Term in DaysTotal Number Pupils in Daily AttendanceNumber Pupils per Teacher in Daily AttendanceMonthly Cost of Teaching per Pupil in Daily AttendanceDaily Cost of Teaching per Pupil in Daily Attendance
Cents
Barwick2$ 780.00$ 65.001203015$ 4.3321.7
Hugo21,080.0090.0012039204.6223.1
Grainger21,170.0097.5012046234.2421.2
Daly21,803.40112.7116047244.7024
Oak View2960.0080.0012040204.0020
Aldridge2780.0065.0012041213.1715.9
Dunn21,120.0056.0012044223.6418.2
Hickory Grove2720.0060.0012045232.6713.4
New Hope2780.0065.0012035183.7118.5
Sandy Bottom21,020.0085.0012052263.2716.4
Millbranch2960.0080.0012047283.4017
Coahoma2780.0065.0012044222.9514.8
Byrds2780.0065.0012065332.0010
Smith's21,086.0067.6216038193.5717.9
Airy Grove2960.0080.0012031165.1625.8
McGowan2720.0060.0012031163.8719.3
Oak Grove2660.0055.0012052262.1210.6
Tyndall2780.0065.0012039203.3316.7
Contentnea21,160.0072.5016034174.2621.3

(1) From the foregoing table it will be seen, as in the one-teacher schools, the daily cost of teaching per pupil in daily attendance covers a wide range, from 10 cents in the Byrd school to 25.8 cents in the Airy Grove school. In six of the two-teacher schools, or approximately 33⅓ per cent of them, the daily cost of teaching is 20 cents and above.

(2) The relatively low cost of 10 cents a day for each pupil in daily attendance in the Byrd school is due in a large measure to the low salaries paid the teachers and the relatively large number of pupils per teacher in daily attendance. The teachers are paid a monthly salary of $65 for a school term of six months. This salary is below the State salary schedule for one who holds a certificate above the elementary.

The school now has 65 pupils in attendance. So long as it is unable to increase its daily attendance beyond 65 it will not be entitled to a third teacher. On the other hand it must seem clear to a wayfaring man that two teachers alone cannot teach very effectively 65 pupils in daily attendance when they are scattered through all the seven grades of the elementary school.

III. HOW MUCH IS IT COSTING MONTHLY AND DAILY TO TEACH
A PUPIL DAILY ATTENDANCE IN THE THREE-TEACHER SCHOOLS
OF THE COUNTY?

TABLE 65—Showing—
Name of SchoolNumber TeachersTotal Salary Paid TeachersAverage Monthly Salary Paid TeachersLength School Term in DaysTotal Number Pupils in Daily AttendanceNumber Pupils per Teacher in Daily AttendanceMonthly Cost of Teaching per Pupil in Daily AttendanceDaily Cost of Teaching per Pupil in Daily Attendance
Cents
Sharon3$1,732.50$ 82.501403311$ 7.5037.5
Farm Valley32,164.0090.1716051175.3026.5
Sand Hill31,534.0088.0012063214.1921.9
Woodington31,125.0062.501206521.72.8814.4
Deep Run31,371.0076.1712087292.6313.2

(1) From the foregoing table it will be seen that the daily cost of teaching per pupil in daily attendance in the three-teacher schools ranges from 13.2 cents in the Deep Run school to 37.5 cents in the Sharon school. This means that it is costing nearly three times as much per pupil in daily attendance in the Sharon school as it is costing in the Deep Run school.

(2) Practically the same causes of relatively high and relatively low cost of instruction operate in these three-teacher schools that are found operating in the one- and two-teacher schools.

(3) The high daily cost of instruction for each pupil in daily attendance in the Sharon school is largely due to the fact that the average daily attendance of pupils per teacher is only 11, while in the Deep Run school the average number per teacher is 29, or nearly three times the number per teacher in the Sharon school.

(4) But notwithstanding the fact that the daily cost of instruction per pupil in these schools is high, yet it is very doubtful if the pupils are securing educational advantages in proportion to this high cost of daily instruction, owing to the fact that the teachers in these schools are having to spend their time and effort over nine and ten grades of work.

We used to think that if we had a three-teacher school we almost had a university in our midst. But progressive farmers throughout the State are finding that we were wrong. Experience is rapidly making it clear in the State that three teachers alone should not be required to spread their time and effort even over seven grades of work, if the needs of the children in the primary grades are to be met in an adequate way. It is because of this change in the sentiment of the people as to the conditions essential for effective teaching, whether it be in the elementary or the high school that changes have been made throughout the country in the requirements the schools attempting high school work have to meet before the pupils can receive any credit in other schools of a higher grade for the work done in the local school. In this State the lowest class even of a non-standard high school is called a “Recognized School.” In order for a school to get into even this lowest class of “non-standard” high schools, the principal of the school must hold at least a High School Teacher's Certificate, the recitations must be 45 minutes long, and the number of pupils in daily attendance above the seventh grade must be 20. Therefore, these communities are not meeting the requirements for the lowest type of even a non-standard high school, and in leaving these schools to attend higher schools the pupils will be unable to receive credit for the work they have done.





COMPARATIVE COST OF TEACHING PER PUPIL IN EACH TYPE OF
RURAL SCHOOLS AND IN THE ELEMENTARY DEPARTMENT OF
THE KINSTON AND THE LAGRANGE SCHOOLS

TABLE 66—Showing—
Type of SchoolTotal Number TeachersTotal Salaries PaidAverage Monthly Salary per TeacherAverage Length School Term in DaysTotal Number Pupils in Daily AttendanceAverage Number Pupils per Teacher in Daily AttendanceAverage Monthly Cost of Teaching per Pupil in Daily AttendanceAverage Daily Cost of Teaching per Pupil in Daily Attendance
Cents
One-teacher15$ 5,535.25$ 61.85119.330720.5$ 3.1315.7
Two-teacher3818,099.4074.79127.4800213.5617.8
Three-teacher157,976.5080.57132299204.1420.7
Four-teacher42,000.3571.4414085213.4017
LaGrange97,875.0087.5018025528.33.0915.5
Kinston4146,965.00114.511801,110274.2421.2

(1) From the above table it will be seen that the daily cost of teaching per pupil in daily attendance in the elementary department of the LaGrange school is 15.5 cents with the teacher receiving an average monthly salary of $87.50, and for a school term of 180 days, and the daily cost of teaching per pupil in daily attendance in the elementary department of the Kinston school is 21.2 cents, with the teacher receiving an average monthly salary of $114.51 for a school term of 180 days.

SUMMARY

(1) In the 15 one-teacher schools as a group the daily cost of teaching per pupil in daily attendance is higher than in LaGrange, with the average monthly salary of the teachers $25.70 less. In 33⅓ per cent of these schools this daily cost of teaching is higher than in Kinston, with the average monthly salary of the teachers $52.66 less.

(2) In the 19 two-teacher schools as a group the average daily cost of teaching per pupil is two cents higher than in LaGrange with the average monthly salary of the teachers $12.71 less. In 26 per cent of these schools this daily cost is higher than in Kinston, with the average monthly salary of the teachers $39.72 less.

(3) In all the three-teacher schools of the county the average daily cost of teaching per pupil in daily attendance is 5 cents higher than in LaGrange, with the average monthly salary of the teachers $6.93 less. In 50 per cent of these schools this daily cost of teaching is higher than in Kinston with the average monthly salary of the teachers $33.94 less.

In the face of these seemingly contradictory facts, the question naturally arises, Why does it cost more to teach a pupil in daily attendance in these one-, two- and three-teacher types of school with the average monthly salary of the teacher so much less, than it does to teach a pupil in daily attendance in the elementary department of the LaGrange school? The answer lies largely in the fact that in the one-teacher schools the average number of pupils in daily attendance per teacher is only 20.5 pupils, in the two-teacher school only 21, in the three-teacher schools only 20, and in the one four-teacher school it is 21, while in the LaGrange school the average number of pupils in daily attendance per teacher is 28.3. But the still further question arises,

Why do the teachers in each type of rural school have fewer pupils in daily attendance per teacher, than the teachers in the LaGrange school. And the answer to this question lies largely in the fact that the total school population in each of these several rural districts is relatively small, which means a relatively small enrollment, and which in turn means a relatively small number of pupils per teacher in daily attendance.

As it does not seem probable that in the near future there will be an appreciable increase in the per cent of total school population over the present school population in these several rural districts, it must appear conclusively not only that the present daily cost of teaching per pupil in daily attendance in these rural schools is high in comparison with LaGrange and Kinston, but that it will continue to be so under the present plan of educating the rural children of the county.





CHAPTER XIII
CAN THE RURAL PUPILS HAVE EQUALITY OF OPPOR-
TUNITY UNDER THE PRESENT DISTRICT PLAN?

In the mass of evidence in the previous pages of this report we have undertaken to prove beyond a shadow of reasonable doubt that the needs of the country children are not being met under the present district plan.

It is our purpose in this chapter to see if it be even possible for the rural children ever to enjoy equality of educational opportunity under the present district plan.

TABLE 67—Showing Inequalities in Size of School Population in Various Communities, in Average Number of Children to be Educated in Each Community, etc.
Type of SchoolTotal White Population, Revised School CensusAverage School Population Each CommunityNumber Teachers for Each of the Various CommunitiesAverage Number Pupils for Each Teacher in Daily AttendanceAverage Number Grades Work for Each TeacherAverage Number Pupils for Each GradeAverage Number Daily Classes for Each TeacherAverage Number Minutes Given to Each Class
One-teacher64443120.56.233211.3
Two-teacher1,620852213.6619.716.3
Three-teacher6851143202.971925
Four-teacher1391394212.291720
Pink Hill44044010261.1231522
Kinston*005727127826
LaGrange4214211328128935

* No report.

(1) From the foregoing table, it will be seen that the average number of children in the school census to be educated in the various communities of the county ranges from 43 in the one-teacher school community to 440 in the Pink Hill consolidated school district, while the average number of teachers that can be employed in each community ranges from one only in the fifteen one-teacher communities to fifty-seven in the Kinston school district.

(2) This inequality in the number of teachers that can be employed in each community likewise determines the inequality in the number of grades of work that can be provided for the pupils in these several communities. These range from seven grades only in each of the fifteen one-teacher school districts to eleven grades or four years of high school work in the Pink Hill consolidated school, in Kinston and in LaGrange. The 644 pupils in the fifteen one-teacher schools cannot get instruction above the seventh grade, however well qualified the teacher may be, or however much the community may supplement the salary to secure a Class A teacher. The law does not sanction the teaching of high school subjects in the one-teacher school. The county board of education does not sanction it. The intelligent parent does not sanction it, nor does hard common sense and simple justice to the children in the primary grades sanction it. That these 644 pupils living in these one-teacher school communities cannot get high school instruction in these one-teacher schools is simply a misfortune which cannot be helped under the present district plan.

Even the 2,444 pupils on the revised school census in the two-, three- and four-teacher schools of the county cannot be given accredited high school instruction, however well the teachers may be qualified and however much these respective communities may supplement their apportionment from the county school fund to secure Class A teachers.

Here again it is simply a misfortune for these pupils that the school population of these several communities is too small to provide enough pupils to justify the employment of enough teachers without an exhorbitant expense to provide for these children high school instruction that will be accredited in any Class A college. But here, too, this misfortune cannot be avoided under the present plan. Therefore because of these inequalities in school population in these various communities, the consequent small number of teachers that the county can afford to employ for each community, the only communities in which, under the present plan, these 3,088 white children can secure accredited high school instruction are the Pink Hill consolidated school, Kinston and LaGrange.

(3) Not only does this inequality in the number of teachers that can be employed in each of these communities determine the number of grades of work that can be provided and the relative value of the high school instruction that is attempted, but this same inequality in the number of teachers employed determines the breadth, richness and practical worth of the course of study that can be provided.

It is not greatly to be wondered at that in 60 per cent of the one-teacher schools, and in 31.6 per cent of the two-teacher schools the daily schedules show no provision for the subject of writing; that in 13 per cent of the two-teacher schools no provision for the subject of history; that in only one of the forty-two rural schools does there seem to be careful and systematic provision for the physical education and training of the pupils. It is not merely a happen so that in 60 per cent of the one-teacher schools there seems to be no provision for the teaching of agriculture. It may not be considered simply an oversight on the part of the teachers that in only one of the forty-two rural schools does there seem to be any systematic provision for the teaching of music; that in 73 per cent of the one-teacher schools, in 42 per cent of the two-teacher schools, and in 50 per cent of the three-teacher schools there appears no provision for the teaching of civics. Neither is it merely an accident that there is no place in the daily schedule of a single rural school in the county for the teaching of manual training to the boys or domestic arts to the girls. The omission of these subjects so essential to efficient citizenship from the daily schedules of the teachers in these various communities is not the result of oversight on the part of the teacher, but in large measure the logical and inevitable result of the limited teaching force in each of these several communities. This broadened, enriched, and practical course of study which these 3,088 country children have the inalienable right to study, and to profit by is simply beyond their reach, and even beyond their reasonable hope under the district plan.

(4) From the above table it will be seen that the average number of pupils per teacher in daily attendance ranges from 20 in the one-teacher schools to 28 in the LaGrange school. Often unthinking parents who are opposed to consolidation contend that in the little one-teacher school the pupils can get more individual help from the teacher than the pupils in the large consolidated school or in the Kinston or the LaGrange school. This argument does not deserve serious consideration. In the first place, the number of children enrolled in the school does not determine the number of grades through which they are scattered, the number of daily classes the teacher has to conduct, nor the number of minutes she can devote to each daily class. In the second





place if this argument has any weight at all it is completely outweighed by the tremendous handicap placed upon these children in being deprived of their inalienable right to profit by an enriched and practical course of study, and to profit by accredited high school advantages. In the third place this contention for the small number of pupils per teacher can certainly have no weight in Lenoir County because the difference in the average number of pupils per teacher in daily attendance in the one-teacher school and in the Pink Hill consolidated school is only six, and in the LaGrange school only eight—a difference in number of pupils per teacher too slight to give any decided advantage to the teacher in the one-teacher over the teacher in the Pink Hill, LaGrange or Kinston school.

(5) From the above table it is seen that the average number of grades each teacher has to undertake to teach in each of the various communities ranges from 6.2 grades in the one-teacher school to 1.1 grades in the Pink Hill consolidated school, to one grade only, for each teacher in the Kinston and in the LaGrange school.

It must seem clear to the dullest mind that even a Class A teacher in the one-teacher school cannot teach 6.2 grades as well as a Class A teacher in the Kinston or LaGrange school can teach one grade; that a Class A teacher in the two-teacher school cannot teach 3.6 grades as well as a Class A teacher can teach one grade in the Pink Hill, the Kinston or LaGrange school; that a Class A teacher in the three-teacher school cannot teach 2.9 grades as well as a Class A teacher can teach one grade in the Pink Hill, LaGrange or the Kinston school; and it must also seem clear that a Class A teacher even in the four-teacher school cannot teach 2.2 grades as well as a Class A teacher can teach one grade in the Pink Hill, the Kinston, or the LaGrange school. To make such a contention is about as sensible as to contend that one strong mule hitched to a little one-horse turning plow can break the land just as deep and break just as much of it in a day as three strong mules hitched to a good disc plow, or two strong mules hitched to a two-horse Oliver chilled turning plow. No progressive farmer makes such a contention.

It must seem plain that equality of teaching service for the children in the various communities of the county is not only impracticable, but impossible.

(6) From the foregoing table it is seen that the average number of daily classes per teacher in these various school districts ranges from 32 in the one-teacher school to 9 daily classes per teacher in LaGrange and eight classes per teacher in Kinston.

With this great difference in the number of daily classes per teacher it becomes impossible for the pupils in these various communities to have an equal chance to advance in their studies, to be promoted from grade to grade, or to get individual help from their teacher when they run up against difficult problems in their arithmetic they cannot work, or in attacking any difficulty in whatever the subject may be.

For the teacher in the one-teacher school with her 32 daily classes, the teacher in the two-teacher school with her 19 daily classes, the teacher in the four-teacher school with her 17 daily classes, it must appear self-evident that it becomes impossible to make the same careful and thorough preparation for each day's classes that the teacher in the LaGrange school with her 9 daily classes or that the teacher in the Kinston school with 8 daily classes can make. Therefore the teachers in these small schools, fully aware of the hopelessness of the task, do not feel encouraged even to attempt it.

Should the teacher in the one-teacher school with her 32 daily classes undertake to spend in preparation for each of these classes an average of 15 minutes only, it would require 480 minutes or eight hours. And should she begin this pleasant task at seven o'clock at night, and work continuously it

would be three o'clock in the morning before she could complete even this meagre preparation for her next day's work. On the other hand should the teacher in Kinston, with her eight daily classes only, spend just 100 per cent more time in preparing each of her next day's classes she, too, could begin this preparation at seven o'clock and have completed this rather careful preparation not by three o'clock the next morning, but by eleven o'clock instead.

It is needless to suggest that a teacher cannot really teach any lesson that she has not seen before calling up her class to recite. And it is equally needless to suggest to the teacher in the small rural school the great importance of making a thorough preparation for each class she conducts when she realizes so fully that such a thing is an impossibility. It is not surprising then that the rate of the pupils’ progress through the different grades in these different communities is so unequal, and must continue unequal. Nor is it surprising that the number of pupils failing in promotion from grade to grade, that the number of pupils who are retarded and have to go back over the same work year after year greatly differs in these various communities of the county.

(7) From the table it will be observed that the average number of minutes given to each daily class ranges from 11.3 minutes in the one-teacher school to 26 minutes in the Kinston school, and to 35 minutes in the LaGrange school. This means that the pupil in the Kinston school is having more than twice as many minutes, and the pupil in the LaGrange school more than three times as many minutes for each daily class as the pupils in the one-teacher school. This means that if the pupil in the Kinston school has five classes each day he is on class 130 minutes or 2 1/6 hours out of the school day of six hours; that if the pupil in the LaGrange school has five classes a day he is on class 175 minutes or nearly 50 per cent of the school day. On the other hand if the pupil in the one-teacher school is fortunate enough to have five lessons a day he is on class only 56.5 minutes, or less than one hour of the school day of six hours. With this marked difference in the length of time these pupils in these various communities are having on each daily class, Is it to be wondered at that the pupils in the one-teacher schools are on the average 15 years old when completing the work of the seventh grade, while the pupils in Kinston are only twelve years old, and the pupils in the LaGrange school but slightly over 13 years old when completing the work of this grade? And with this marked inequality in the number of minutes for each daily class in these different communities Is it surprising that 82.3 per cent of the pupils in the one-teacher schools is over age for their grade against 55 per cent in Kinston, and only 52.9 per cent in LaGrange?

Since the pupils in the one-teacher schools are on class on the average only 56.5 minutes out of the school day of six hours, they are having to spend the other five hours of their school day at their seats. And since the teacher's time is almost entirely taken up with conducting these 32 daily lessons she has but little, if any, time left to direct, to supervise, or to give help to individual pupils, however great their need may be for explanations and assistance in mastering their next lesson.

How these pupils are spending these five hours each day at their seats with their work practically unsupervised by the teacher, let the genius of the small boy make answer. The teacher has the third-reader class up at the front seat. The pupils are merely calling words—calling what words they can, leaving the balance to the teacher to pronounce. Of course the teacher is not teaching the lesson. She cannot. Because of her 32 daily classes to “hear” she has not had time to prepare this lesson to see what main thought in this lesson is to be left upon the minds of her pupils. So it is merely a word-calling performance between pupils and teacher. But while this word-calling performance is going on the pupils at their seats are also going through their performances.





Over here two boys are engaged in a spit-ball contest, each trying to outdo the other in being the first to make a spit-ball stick to the ceiling. Over there are two boys—one with a pin and the other a pen point. They are practicing upon each other the sabre thrust. Over there are two girls, their heads behind Dodge's Geography. They are eating ginger. Over there are two more girls; they are artists engaged in drawing the picture of their dear teacher. There is a little fellow who has gotten so tired of doing nothing but dangling his legs from his seat that with his head upon the desk in front of him, has given up the struggle and is enjoying a morning nap. One little boy on the back seat feels the need of diversion from the monotony of having to sit at his seat for so long a time. He looks through his reading lesson till his eye falls upon a word a bit difficult to pronounce. With his finger glued upon this word, but his eye upon a Blue Jay just lighted near the window, he paces down the aisle to get his teacher to pronounce the word for him. The teacher stops her word-calling performance with her third-grade reading class long enough to pronounce the word for him. And back to his seat this little genius paces with no more knowledge of how to pronounce the word than when he left his seat a few minutes before. Soon the third-grade reading class is told to get the next lesson and back to their seats they go to join the spit-ball brigade. This picture may seem a bit overdrawn, but not so much so that the situation described cannot easily be recognized.

(8) From the above table it will be seen that the average number of pupils in each grade in these different communities ranges from 3 pupils in the oneteacher school to 27 in Kinston, to 28 pupils in LaGrange. In the one-teacher school the average number of pupils for each grade is 3, in the two-teacher schools 6, in the three-teacher 7, and four-teacher 9 pupils. It must appear clear that with from 3 to 9 pupils in a grade opportunities for wholesome rivalry and friendly competition in classroom work, that opportunities for team-work, for social cooperation in literary contests or in athletic contests upon the playground are meagre indeed. With from 3 to 9 pupils only in a class, not much enthusiasm can grow out of a spelling match or a debate; not much zest can come out of a basketball game or upon the baseball diamond. Hardly more than enough to play stick frog, hale over, or bull pen. Consequently school spirit and school pride, if any at all, is hardly noticeable. The older boys and girls grow tired of school life, and prefer remaining at home.

And yet there are those who claim that the small rural school with its small number of pupils is the very soil out of which grow great individuals. They hark back to the days of the old schoolmaster, with his masterful personality, and who oftentimes was a man of ripe scholarship. This old schoolmaster was wont to gather about him the children of the most favored parents in the neighborhood, children whose native endowments constituted them the best minds in the community. It was a kind of intellectual aristocracy that he gathered about him. And this old schoolmaster with his strong personality and ripe scholarship frequently did leave the impress of his strong individuality upon this group of best minds, and frequently these best minds did grow into strong men and women, making their finest contribution to the generation of that day. But this old schoolmaster with his impressive individuality and ripe scholarship is not out there in these small rural schools today. Sallie is out there now. She is young, inexperienced, and her scholarship is hardly beyond that of a high school education. The group that gather about her day after day is not composed of the best minds only in the neighborhood. Her group is not confined to the aristocracy of the community. It represents a genuine democracy. It ranges from the best minds down almost in some cases to the moron. And thus handicapped by this varying degree of mentality she has to teach, with her larger number of daily classes, and a few

minutes only for each class, it would seem mere folly to proclaim this kind of a situation as the true situation in which to grow strong men and women best prepared to make their finest contributions to this advancing age.

More and more we are coming to believe that the best way to grow a strong man or woman like growing a great nation, is not through the policy of seclusion, or splendid isolation, but rather through the policy of social coöperation. More and more we are coming to believe that to make strong and efficient citizens, children must be brought under a strong personality in vital contact with large groups of children of similar age, of similar size, with mental endowments equal and even greater than their own; and that these larger groups of children under this teacher with strong personality and ripe scholarship may have provided for them ample opportunities for inspiring emulation, wholesome rivalry, and friendly competition, whether in their classroom work, in literary contests, or whether out upon the playground in athletic contests of all sorts. In this way, is each member of this genuine democracy challenged at whatever angle his talents may lie to achieve the best that is in him, to become the strongest individual possible, and in making his most worth-while contribution for the advancement of the community. And these demands the small rural schools are totally unable to meet. For Zev, to run his fastest and nose out ahead in the final round, there must be an In Memoriam close upon his heels and crowding him to his utmost limit.

TABLE 68—Showing Inequalities in Number of White Pupils Enrolled in Each Local Tax District, in Total Amount of Taxable Wealth, etc.
Name of SchoolNumber TeachersNumber White School EnrollmentTotal Amount of Taxable WealthAmount of Taxable Wealth for Each PupilLocal Tax Rate VotedTotal Amount Local Tax Fund Produced on a Uniform 30c. RateAmount of Local Tax Fund for Each Pupil Enrolled
Bethel130$ 301,700.00$10,056.6630$ 905.10$ 30.17
Fairview142*278,680.006,635.00*15836.0419.90
Oak Dale132196,880.006,152.5030590.6418.45
Daly2†536,560.00301,609.68
Hickory Grove273431,700.005,913.70151,295.1017.74
Airy Grove241389,710.009,505.00301,169.1328.52
Hugo255284,575.005,174.2730853.7215.52
Dunn274264,010.003,567.7030792.0310.70
Grainger277262,195.003,405.1330786.5810.22
Oak View274235,710.003,185.2715703.009.50
Byrds291230,445.002,532.2530691.337.60
Contentnea252221,445.004,239.3330664.3312.78
Barwick245218,120.004,847.1130654.3614.54
Farm Valley3103772,345.007,498.50302,317.0322.50
Institute384495,260.005,895.95301,485.7817.69
Sand Hill395366,840.003,861.47301,100.5211.58
Sharon356360,390.006,435.53301,081.1719.31
Woodington398163,915.001,672.6030491.745.02
Moss Hill4139585,920.004,215.25301,757.7612.65
Pink Hill10399550,515.001,379.74301,654.544.15
Kinston571,61712,901,209.007,978.483738,703.6223.94
LaGrange134042,784,798.006,893.00358,354.3920.68

* Given by County Superintendent. Since it was difficult to separate the amount of taxable wealth owned by each race, the total amount owned by both races is included here. If the amount of taxable wealth owned by negroes in these communities should be deducted from these totals, then the amount of per capita wealth for the white children would not be as much as is included in the table.† No report.



(1) From the foregoing table it is seen that the amount of taxable wealth in these various communities ranges from $163,915 in the Woodington District to $772,345 in the Farm Valley District, and to $12,901,209 in 1922-23 in the Kinston District.

(2) The total amount of taxable wealth for each pupil enrolled in the various local tax districts ranges from $1,672.60 in the Woodington District to $10,056.66 in the Bethel District.

(3) Levying a uniform 30-cent local tax rate in each of these various districts, the total amount of the local tax fund resulting therefrom ranges from $491.74 in the Woodington District to $2,317.03 in the Farm Valley District, and to $38,703.62 in the Kinston District. This means that the man in the Farm Valley District paying a 30-cent local tax helps to raise a local school fund more than four times as large as the man who pays this same 30-cent tax in the Woodington District; that the man in Kinston paying a 30-cent local tax helps to raise a local tax school fund nearly 79 times as large as the man who pays this 30-cent tax in Woodington.

(4) The amount of local fund for each pupil enrolled in the various districts based upon the local tax rate of 30 cents ranges from $5.02 in the Woodington District to $22.50 in Farm Valley, to $28.52 in Airy Grove and to $30.17 for each pupil in the Bethel District.

(5) From the foregoing facts it must appear self-evident that under the present plan of voting a local tax upon the district as the unit, that if every man in every district of the county, including Kinston and LaGrange, pays the same rate of tax, equality of educational opportunity for the children in these various districts still remains an impossibility.

How much teaching service and how much educational opportunity a parent can buy for his child with his 30-cent local tax rate depends entirely upon where he happens to live in the county.

The parent in the Bethel District pays his 30-cent local tax rate and thereby helps to raise a local tax fund of $905.10 or $30.17 for each pupil enrolled. This amount of local tax fund for each pupil enrolled is the largest in the county. But notwithstanding this fact the parent has to remain contented with a one-teacher school only, owing to the fact that the school enrollment being 30 pupils only, and the daily attendance being 21 pupils only, the county board of education is not justified under the law in apportioning from the county salary fund the salary for the second teacher.

But this parent is progressive and ambitious for this children. “Very well,” says he, “the county board of education will give us one Class A teacher, pay her a Class A salary of $100 per month for the six months school term. We will employ an additional Class A teacher out of our local tax fund of $905.10 and pay her a Class A salary of $100 per month. We are going to have a Class A two-teacher school and run our school for an eight months school term. Now this additional Class A teacher at a monthly salary of $100 for a school term of eight months will draw $800 of his $905.10 local tax fund. This will leave $105.10 with which to pay the other Class A teacher for the seventh and eighth month. Consequently the Bethel District in struggling to get out of the one-teacher class into the two-teacher class with an eight months school term, not only pays as high a rate of local tax as any rural district in the county, but at the end of the session finds itself in debt to the amount of $84.90 for teachers’ salaries alone. And in addition, the daily cost of teaching these 21 pupils in daily attendance has been 47c., which is more than twice the present daily cost of teaching each pupil in daily attendance in the elementary department of the Kinston school, and more than three times the present daily cost of teaching each pupil in daily attendance in the elementary department of the LaGrange school. After all this struggle, this exhorbitant per capita cost of teaching these twenty-one pupils, the community has only a

two-teacher school still. And next session this community, in order to prevent a deficit, and because of its small school population, and its total taxable wealth, may find it the part of wisdom to secure a lower grade teacher, reduce the length of the school term, or drop back into the one-teacher class.

The parent living in the Airy Grove District and paying this 30-cent local tax rate, helps to raise a local tax fund of $1,169.13, or $28.52 for each pupil enrolled. This amount of local tax fund for each pupil enrolled is the next highest amount per pupil enrollment in the county. But notwithstanding this fact, because the school enrollment is 41 pupils only, and the average daily attendance 31 pupils only, the county board of education is not justified in apportioning from the salary fund the salary for a third teacher.

This parent is also progressive and ambitious for his children. “Very well,” says he, the county board of education will give us two Class A teachers, and pay them a Class A salary of $100 a month each for the six months school term. We will employ the third Class A teacher out of our local tax fund of $1,169.13, and pay her a Class A salary of $100 a month. We intend to have a Class A three-teacher school and an eight months school term. But this Class A teacher at a monthly salary of $100 for an eight months school term will draw $800 of this $1,169.13 local tax fund, thereby leaving only $369.13 with which to pay the other two Class A teachers a hundred dollars apiece for the seventh and eighth month. Consequently the Airy Grove District in struggling to get out of the two-teacher into a Class A three-teacher school with an eight months school term, and paying as high a rate of local tax as any rural community in the county, finds itself at the end of the session with a debt of $30.48 for teachers’ salaries alone. And in addition the daily cost of teaching each of these 31 pupils in daily attendance has been approximately 49 cents, which is more than 100 per cent above the present daily cost of teaching each pupil in daily attendance in the elementary department of the Kinston school, and 300 per cent more than the daily cost of teaching each pupil in daily attendance in the elementary department of the LaGrange school. After all this struggle, this exceedingly high per capita cost of teaching each pupil in daily attendance, the community has a three-teacher school only. And next year, in order to prevent a deficit, in order to live within the 30-cent local tax rate, the Airy Grove District, because of its small school population and the amount of taxable wealth, will have to secure a lower grade of teacher, reduce the length of the school term, or drop back into the two-teacher class.

But should the parent live in the Pink Hill Consolidated School District and pay this same 30-cent local tax rate he would thereby help to raise a local tax fund of $1,654.54, or $4.15 for each pupil enrolled. As will be observed from the table, this amount of local tax fund for each pupil enrolled is several times smaller than the amount for each of the 56 pupils enrolled in the Sharon school, several times smaller than the amount for each of the 30 pupils enrolled in the Bethel school, and several times smaller than the amount for each of the 41 pupils enrolled in the Airy Grove school. But the Pink Hill consolidated school enrolls 399 pupils, and its total taxable wealth is larger than that in the foregoing communities. Therefore the Pink Hill school is a ten-teacher school and with an eight months school term. Consequently the parents in the Pink Hill Consolidated School District pay this same 30-cent local tax rate, that all the other communities pay, but because of this larger school population and larger total wealth he is enabled to purchase for his children with this 30-cent local tax, the teaching service of ten well equipped teachers, instead of one only, two only or three only. With this 30-cent local tax he purchases for his children the advantages of good vocational instruction, the advantages of an accredited four-year high school, to which his





children may ride in an auto truck for eight months in the year, from which they can enter any college in the State without further preparation, from which they are entitled to receive an elementary teacher's certificate to teach school in Lenoir County nor any county in the State, and from which those who neither teach school or go to college can return to their community fairly well equipped to discharge successfully the daily duties and obligations of an efficient citizen.

SUMMARY

(1) Because of inequalities in the number of pupils to be educated in each of the various districts, there inevitably follow inequalities in the number of teachers that can be employed out of the county salary fund, in the number of grades per teacher, in the high school advantages provided for the children, in the number of daily classes per teacher, and also inequality in the number of minutes that can be given to each daily class in these different communities.

(2) Because of inequalities in school population, and in taxable wealth in these various communities, there inevitably follow inequalities in the length of school term, in the annual salaries teachers can receive, in the tax rate to secure the same educational advantages for the children, and finally, inequalities in the academic and professional training of the teacher than can be secured for these various communities.

(3) Because of these inequalities in school population and taxable wealth, a parent in one community may purchase for his children with his 30-cent local tax rate the advantages of a one-teacher school only; a parent in another community the advantages of a three-teacher school only; while a parent living in another community may purchase for his children with this same 30-cent local tax rate the advantages of a ten-teacher school, an eight months school term, with efficient vocational instruction, with accredited four-year high school instruction, and in addition his children may ride to and from school each day on an auto-truck.

(4) Although there are parents in each of the various districts ambitious to give their children an equal chance in the race of life with the children in the most favored districts of the county, and though they would gladly pay as high a rate of local tax as the parents in these most favored communities, yet even then the educational possibilities for their children in the home community are practically fixed and determined not by the willingness of the individual parent to pay, but by the size of the school population and the total amount of taxable wealth in that particular district. Under the present district plan these parents are somewhat like men within a high enclosure, the walls of which are too high for them to scale.

(5) And thus it seems clear that under the present district plan of education equality of educational opportunity must remain for these country children an impossibility.

PART TWO
Proposed Plan for Reorganization and Support
CHAPTER XIV
UNDER WHAT PLAN CAN COUNTRY CHILDREN AND
CITY CHILDREN HAVE EQUALITY OF EDUCATIONAL
OPPORTUNITY?

From the facts presented in the foregoing chapters of this survey we have attempted to make two things clear: (a) That under the district unit plan the educational needs of the rural children are not being met; and (b) that because of the inequality in the size of the population, and in the amount of taxable wealth in the various districts of the county, equality of educational opportunity for all the children in the county becomes a practical impossibility.

(1) The County the Unit in Taxation for Equal Length of School Term. Under the present district unit plan, the county is the unit of taxation for schools for the constitutional six months school term only. Here the county board of commissioners levies upon all the property in the county a uniform tax rate to produce the county salary fund for the six months school term, while the county board of education apportions this salary fund to pay the teachers in all schools of the county, both rural and urban, for the six months school term. Beyond providing and apportioning this county salary fund for the six months school term the county does not operate as one unit of taxation for the maintenance of the schools.

But even when undertaking to operate as one unit of taxation for the maintenance of schools for the six months school term only, the dead hand of the district unit plan is clearly in evidence. For, as previously seen, the county board of education apportions this six months county salary fund upon the basis of the certificate held by the teachers, but the grade of teachers a district is able to employ is determined in a large measure by the amount of annual salary she will receive. The amount of annual salary she receives is determined in a large measure by the number of months in the school term. The length of school term beyond the six months school term is determined in a large measure by the taxable wealth of the particular district. Therefore, because of the marked inequalities that exist in the amount of taxable wealth in these various communities, if the children in these various districts are to have teachers as competent, as well educated, and as well trained as the teachers who teach the Kinston children and the LaGrange children, then it must appear self-evident that the county itself must become the absolute unit of taxation for schools not for the six months school term only, but for an equal length of school term for all schools in the county, both rural and urban.

(2) The County the Unit in Consolidation of Schools. Experience has made it clear that in many instances our attempts at consolidation have been ineffective because spasmodic and isolated. We have gone about the work in piecemeal fashion. Our vision has been too narrow.





Too frequently we have been content to join together two, three, five, six or eight little schools over here in this section of the county, then join together two, four, six, or eight little schools over there in that section of the county. We have formed each consolidation without regard to the other consolidation, without regard to further probable consolidation in that particular section of the county and practically without any regard at all to the county as one complete unit of consolidation embracing modern elementary and Class A four-year high schools in one unified and efficient county system of schools. Each consolidated school district and each consolidated school is a separate, unrelated and independent unit within itself. And yet notwithstanding this fact we have allowed ourselves to believe that we had a real constructive county-wide plan of consolidation, and that our consolidation program is now complete.

But the inevitable consequences of this piecemeal plan of consolidation are apparent upon the surface. Because of the inequality in taxable wealth and in size of school population, numbers of teachers that can be employed, equality of educational opportunity for the children throughout the county cannot be provided, we have almost the same inequalities that we had under the little district plan previously discussed.

Over here is one of these isolated consolidated school districts. The amount of taxable wealth is relatively large. The number of pupils to be educated is relatively large. The school building in attractiveness, adequateness in construction and equipment is a credit to the State. The school term is eight months. There is a well educated and professionally trained teacher for each of the seven elementary grades. From ten to fifteen well educated and well trained teachers are teaching the large number of high school pupils. The tax rate for money borrowed or for bonds issued for the erection of the splendid building, conducting the school term for eight months, and employing Class A teachers, is relatively low.

Over there is another of these isolated consolidated school districts. The amount of taxable wealth is relatively small; the number on the school census is relatively small. The school building is unattractive, rather poorly constructed and is inadequately equipped. The school term is six or seven months only. None of the teachers are college graduates. In the elementary school each teacher has to teach from two to three grades. In the high school are not enough pupils to justify the employment of more than three or four high school teachers. The school can never become a standard Class A high school. The tax rate for their school building, and even for a seven months school term, with teachers holding lower than a Class A certificate is relatively high.

Yet this isolated consolidated school is within six or eight miles of the county seat with its splendid high school faculty of from twenty to thirty well educated and professionally trained teachers, and the school running for a nine months school term. But between this splendid high school within, and this little inefficient, isolated consolidated school without, there is an impassable gulf. The isolated, consolidated school district and not the county is the unit in consolidation.

And the fact that a uniform county-wide tax rate is being levied upon all the taxable wealth of the county for money borrowed or for bonds voted for the erection of school buildings at these isolated consolidated centers does not provide for nor equalize the tax rate for an eight months school term, does not equalize the number of grades of work each teacher has to teach in each of these various isolated consolidated centers; does not equalize the type of teacher that can be employed or the quality of instruction the children receive in these separate centers; does not equalize the number of high school teachers or the high school advantages the high school pupils in these various independent centers receive.

With these prevailing and outstanding inequalities of educational opportunity throughout the county the question quite naturally arises, Can a plan with such existing inequalities be considered a real constructive county-wide plan of consolidation in our modern sense of that term? It is because that experience has proven the total inadequacy of our piecemeal consolidation, that progressive county boards of education and live wire and aggressive county superintendents are coming to realize more and more that if all the children of the county are to enjoy the equality of educational opportunity, then not the isolated consolidated school district, but the county itself must become the only real and effective unit in consolidation, amply providing for modern elementary and standard Class A high schools in one unified and efficient county system of schools.

(3) The County the Unit in Taxation for all Money Borrowed or for all Bonds Issued for the Erection of Consolidated School Buildings. More and more the progressive citizenship of both town and country districts are coming to understand that if all the children of the county are to have an equal chance to attend school in buildings that are modern, adequately constructed and equipped, the tax burden for these buildings must be equitably placed by making the entire taxable wealth of the county as one unit become responsible for all bonds issued, or for all money borrowed for the erection of these buildings whether they are to be located in town or country.

If the proposition to make all taxable wealth of the county bear its just and equitable part in all county bonds issued for good roads be sound; if the proposition to make all taxable wealth of the county bear its just and equitable part in all county bonds issued for courthouse and jail be sound; then the proposition must appear equally sound to make all taxable wealth in the county bear its just and equitable part in all bond issues for the erection of modern, adequately constructed and equipped consolidated school buildings that are to serve the needs of all the children of all the people of the county.

This is precisely the principle upon which Kinston itself operates in providing school facilities for its children. When bonds were voted for the Lewis school, the wealth of the entire town bore its just and equitable part, and not simply the taxable wealth of the ward or block in which the building is erected. In voting bonds for the Grainger school, again the entire taxable wealth of the town as one unit bore its just and equitable part of this burden, and not the taxable wealth of the ward only in which it is erected. In the recent bond issue for the schools in Kinston, we will not find an old ramshackle building put in that part of the town that has less wealth, and a handsome structure erected in that part of the town that has more wealth. But wherever the child may live in Kinston, he will have an equal chance to attend school in a building that is comfortable, attractive, modernly constructed and adequately equipped. And this is made possible only by the fact that the taxable wealth of the entire town as one unit bears its just and equitable part in all bonds issued for Kinston school buildings.

Because a child happens to live in East Kinston, or happens to live in South Kinston, he is not deprived of good high school advantages. The children completing the elementary school in any one section of the town can go without difficulty directly to the Kinston high school. This is made possible only by the fact that the Kinston District is one unit of taxation, one unit of consolidation and one unit of school administration and supervision, and the elementary school and the high school are but simply the closely related parts of one system.

If the proposition be sound that all the taxable wealth of Kinston District as one unit should bear its just and equitable part in all bonds issued for the erection of modern school buildings for the children of Kinston to attend, the





proposition seems equally sound that the taxable wealth of the entire county as one unit should bear its just and equitable part in all bond issues for the erection of modern consolidated school buildings for all the children of all the people in Lenoir County.

(4) Law Requiring County-wide Plan in Consolidation. See Section 73-a, Public School Law of 1923. In order that the mistakes of the past may be avoided in consolidation, the law now makes it mandatory upon the county board of education to construct a definitely outlined plan of consolidation with the county as the unit before it can undertake any consolidation of schools. The county board of education shall create no new district nor shall it divide or abolish a district, nor shall it consolidate districts or parts of districts except it be in accordance with the county-wide plan of consolidation. The county board of education shall present a diagram or map of county showing the present location of each district, the location of roads, streams and other natural barriers, the number of children in each district, the size and condition of each school building in each district. The county board of education shall then propose a county-wide plan for the organization of all the schools of the county. This plan shall indicate the proposed changes to be made and how districts or parts of districts are proposed to be consolidated as to work out a more advantageous school system for the entire county.

Before adopting the county-wide plan, the county board of education shall call a meeting of all the school committeemen and the boards of trustees and lay the proposed plan before them for their advice and suggestions. After receiving the advice of the committeemen and trustees, the county board of education shall have authority to adopt a county-wide plan of organization, and no districts or parts of any district, including non-local tax, local tax, and special charter districts hereafter referred to in this article, shall be consolidated or the boundary lines changed, unless the consolidation or the change of boundary lines is in accordance with the adopted county-wide plan of organization: Provided, that in the event the county board of education deems it wise to modify or change the adopted plan, the board shall notify the committeemen and interested patrons and give them a hearing if they desire to be heard before any changes shall be made.

The county board of education shall have authority to execute the entire plan or any part of the same, but the county board of education shall have no authority to create a debt for the execution of any part of the proposed plan, unless authorized by law, and if the amount necessary to put into operation all or any part of said plan shall be greater than the amount that maybe reasonably expected from the operating and equipment fund for this purpose, the amount shall be guaranteed by the districts affected by the execution of the plan, or if the districts do not guarantee the funds the county board of education shall lay the proposed plan before the county commissioners, together with the estimated amount necessary to put the same into operation, and if the amount necessary to carry out all or any part of the proposed plan shall be approved by the county commissioners, the county board of education shall then have the authority to organize the districts in accordance with the county-wide plan.

When the proposed county-wide plan is adopted the county board shall notify the committeemen and boards of trustees as to what part of the plan the board proposes to carry out first and in what order the other part of the plan will be considered, and the preference shall be given to those districts in which the needs are greatest if the funds for providing the equipment are made available.

In the event that any child or children of any district or any part of a district are without adequate school advantages, and these advantages may be

improved by transferring said child or children to a school or school in adjoining districts, the county board shall have authority to make such a transfer. But this shall not empower the county board of education to abolish or divide a district unless such act shall be in harmony with the county-wide plan of organization. The temporary transfer of such child or children may be made until such time as the county-wide plan will provide more advantageously for them.

(5) Making the County the Unit in School Administration and Supervision. If the proposition to make the county the unit in taxation for the maintenance of schools be sound, if the proposition to make the county the only unit in consolidation of schools and in bond issues for consolidated school buldings be sound, then the proposition must seem equally sound to make the county the only unit in school administration and supervision.

Under the present plan there are three separate and independent boards of control, each with its separate and independent superintendent of schools. There is the county board of education with its county superintendent directly responsible for directing and supervising the rural schools only; there is the Kinston board of trustees with its superintendent; and there is the LaGrange board of trustees with its superintendent. Each board of control is appointed by and directly responsible to a different constituency.

Each board of control with its superintendent, therefore, quite naturally and inevitably feels that in the employment of teachers, in the fixing of the salary schedule, in securing the money with which to pay the teachers, in providing school buildings and equipment, in school attendance regulations, its first and chief concern is for the children within its particular jurisdiction, leaving, in large measure, each of the other boards of control to work out its own solution in accordance with its own best judgment.

Now it may happen under the present plan that the county board of education is having to keep up a small elementary school within three or four miles of LaGrange. The average number of pupils in daily attendance ranges from fifteen to twenty-five. These pupils are scattered all the way from the first through the seventh grade. The teaching is exceedingly poor, while the daily cost of teaching each pupil in daily attendance is far higher than it is in LaGrange. Because of the small number of pupils in the school, and because they are scattered through all the seven grades, these pupils could easily be transferred to the LaGrange school without making it necessary to employ an additional teacher for the LaGrange school. Transferring these pupils to the LaGrange school would thereby save to the county the unnecessary expense of keeping up this school building, and the salary of the teacher, while these transferred pupils would receive really efficient instruction. But the county board of education has no right to transfer these pupils unless the LaGrange people assent to it. The LaGrange school is entirely outside the jurisdiction of the county board of education. On the other hand, the LaGrange school being a separate and independent unit is under no obligation to provide school building, school equipment and teaching service for country children living beyond the boundary lines of their school district. The trustees of the LaGrange school were appointed by the people of LaGrange to provide schooling for LaGrange children only. Now of course the LaGrange people being a generous people, will gladly permit the county board of education to transfer these country children to their school, provided of course that in so doing the LaGrange children are not overcrowded, provided the county board can make satisfactory arrangement with the LaGrange trustees for the necessary expenses of these children, or provided the parents of these children will pay the rate of tuition demanded by the LaGrange board of trustees. However,





should the county board of education be unable to meet the requirements of the LaGrange board, and should the parents of these children be unable or unwilling to pay the rates of tuition charged, then these country children will have to remain in their little nearby and inefficient schools, and the county board of education will have to continue to pay out of the taxes of the people of the county for the upkeep of this little building, and for the salary of the inefficient teacher.

Under the present plan it may happen and probably is happening that within a radius of from five to ten miles of Kinston, there are pupils completing the work of the seventh grade and are ready for high school. These pupils are anxious for first-class high school instruction. And such is their inalienable right. The county board of education is anxious for these country children to have the advantages of a splendid four-year high school course. But what can the county board do about it? There are not enough of these country children living in any one district outside of Kinston to justify this board in undertaking to employ efficient high school teachers to teach these children in their local school. To do this the cost of teaching would be prohibitive. Moreover the taxable wealth in these local communities is not sufficient to enable these people to erect a modern high school building in which these pupils can get high school instruction. There is only one place where it is practicable for these pupils in these outlying rural communities to get adequate high school instruction, and that place is the Kinston high school. But the county board of education cannot say to these country children that are clamoring for adequate high school advantages, “Very well, we cannot give you this instruction in your home school, but we will transfer you to the Kinston high school.” The county board of education has no authority to do this. The Kinston school is under the control of a separate and independent board, and the Kinston board is under no obligation to provide high school buildings, and high school teachers for country children living outside of their jurisdiction. The Kinston trustees are appointed by the board of aldermen to make the needs of the Kinston children their first and chief concern. But of course the Kinston people being a generous people, will gladly welcome these country children into their splendid school, but naturally with certain stipulated provisions; provided the coming of these country children will not overcrowd their own children, provided the county board will pay their way, or provided their parents will pay the rate of tuition required by the Kinston board. In the event, however, that the county board cannot meet the requirements of the Kinston board, or in the event the parents of these country children are unable or unwilling to pay the rate of tuition required by the Kinston board, then there is no hope for these country children to receive the benefits of a splendid four-year high school.

But the point is, that under the present plan of separate and independent boards of control, no one board is under obligation to provide either elementary or high school buildings for Lenoir County children not living within the bounds of its particular jurisdiction, however much the per capita cost for school building and equipment, for teaching service, and for supervision might be reduced, or however much it might result in increased educational advantages and educational opportunities for the children thus transferred.

Under the present plan there are three separate and independent boards of control; there are likewise three separate and independent systems of schools. There is the rural school system, the Kinston school system, and the LaGrange system. Quite naturally the superintendent of each system feels that in the organization and conduct of schools his first consideration is for the needs of the pupils within his particular system. Each system of schools, therefore, is more or less independent of the other system, in the methods of instruction

emphasized, in the subjects taught in the grades, in the requirements of work to be done by the pupils before promoting them from grade to grade, before promoting them from the elementary school, or before permitting them to graduate from the high school, Hence it doubtless happens that pupils finishing the work of the fourth grade in one system finds he is unprepared to enter the fifth grade in another system; that pupils completing the work of the elementary school in one system find themselves unprepared to enter upon high school work in another system; that pupils using a certain text-book on a certain subject say in the fifth grade on entering the fifth grade in another system find they have to lay aside this book and buy a different text-book on this same subject.

Consequently under this present plan of separate and independent boards of control, there is no one board of control whose chief concern it is to see clearly, fully and impartially, and to provide adequately for the educational needs of all the children of all the people of the county. Lenoir county children are therefore seen in “blocs” only; are seen as county children, as Kinston children or LaGrange children. Even under the most favorable circumstances conflicting administrative aims and administrative policies are difficult to avoid. Unification and coördination of administrative policies are frequently difficult and impossible, while duplication of costs for teaching, for building and administration seem inevitable.

With each superintendent having more or less a separate and independent system of schools, each requiring different standards of work to be reached before promoting pupils from grade to grade, each with different standards of work to be done before the completion of the elementary or high school, each with different professional objectives for his teachers for the school term—with these manifest differences it must seem clear that unification and standardization of work in both the elementary and high schools throughout the county cannot even be expected, while unity of purpose and of effort among the teachers who teach the children of Lenoir County becomes impossible.

(6) Progress in the Growth of the County Unit Plan. Because of the inevitable inequalities in educational opportunity arising under the district unit plan, sentiment, during the past few years for making the county itself the absolute unit in texation for schools, and in administrative control, has been gaining ground not only in various progressive states of America, but in North Carolina as well.

In making the county the unit of taxation for schools and school administration, Louisiana, Maryland and Florida seem to have forged to the front.

In Maryland, with the exception of Baltimore, a city of 700,000 in population, there are no independent school districts. In Louisiana, New Orleans alone is the only independent unit of taxation for schools and school administration, while in Florida there is not an independent school district in any of the counties of the State.

In Louisiana all the schools of the parish, which compare to our county, both rural and urban, are under one county board of control. This county board appoints one superintendent for all the schools in the county, with one assistant held directly responsible for the city school in the county, and one assistant directly responsible for all the rural schools of the county. Each assistant superintendent is provided with a sufficient number of supervisors to guarantee to the city children and to the rural children of the county equality of opportunity in the efficient supervision of their work.

In a personal letter State Superintendent Harris, of Louisiana, says:

“The county has been the unit of school administration in Louisiana from the beginning of things here, I suppose. We think it provides efficient school machinery, and there is, therefore, no demand for a departure from it.





“Each county elects a small overlapping school board; the board elects a county superintendent, who must meet certain standards of education and experience; and the school board and the superintendent have entire charge of all public school matters in the county, including any cities that may be located in the county, subject, of course, to the laws and the rules and regulations of the State Board of Education.

“The county unit has the following advantages:

“(1) Two-thirds of the membership of the school board is always experienced.

“(2) There is no politics in school affairs. The school board elects a competent man for the office of superintendent without reference to his votegetting ability.

“(3) The board members and the superintendent have no political debts to pay and they are, therefore, in position to use their best judgment in locating schools, employing teachers, and supervising class-room instruction.

“The whole thing, perhaps, can be summed up in the short statement that under our system the State and county school officials are unhampered, and can move forward in educational accomplishments to the extent of their ability, initiative, and available school funds.”

In Maryland all the public schools of the county, rural and urban, are under one county board of education with one county superintendent responsible for the direction and supervision of all schools in the county. The county board of education appoints all the trustees for all the schools in the county, both rural and urban. All the taxable wealth of the county becomes responsible for all bonds issued for public school buildings. County bonds are issued by act of the Legislature, with a referendum to the whole county, or without a referendum if the Legislature decides.

In a personal letter says State Superintendent A. S. Cook:

“The two largest cities in Maryland have populations of 35,000 and 30,000, respectively. These and all other cities, except Baltimore City, are under the direct control of the county superintendent. Of course, our State Law of 1922 provides a supervising teacher for every forty or fifty elementary teachers, whether in rural schools or city schools, and two-thirds of the salary of each supervisor is paid by the State. This means that the rural schools of Maryland are being organized, directed, and supervised as efficiently as they are in cities of the same population.”

In North Carolina there has been during the past few years a marked growth in the sentiment of the people for making the county more completely a unit for taxation for schools and for school administration and supervision.

In Richmond County there is one county superintendent for both the rural schools and the schools in the town of Rockingham. In Lee County there is one county superintendent for both the rural schools and the schools of Sanford.

In Guilford County, with the exception of Greensboro and High Point, the county has been made one taxing district for schools and with one board of control.

In Wilson County there is one superintendent for both the rural schools and the schools in the town of Wilson. In this county the county unit plan for taxation for schools and for school administration is more advanced than in the foregoing counties. A few years ago the county voted a special county-wide tax, and now conducts all of its schools for an eight months term with the exception of the town of Wilson which conducts its schools for a nine months school term.

New Hanover County is no doubt the best illustration in the State of the county unit plan of taxation for schools and school administration. The

county itself is the unit of taxation for schools for an equal length of school term for all schools in the county, both rural and city. All the children in the county have a school term of nine months.

The county is the unit of taxation for all bonds issued for the erection of school buildings. The taxable wealth of the entire county is now responsible for county-wide bonds for schools to the amount of $741,000. These county-wide bond issues were voted by the people themselves.

The county is the absolute unit in school administration and school supervision. The town of Wilmington is not a special charter district. All the schools of the county, both rural and city, are under the control of the county board of education. This board appoints the school committeemen in the rural districts, and also the trustees of the city of Wilmington. This board appoints one superintendent for the entire county and one assistant superintendent whose time is devoted to the rural schools.

Since the county is the unit in taxation for schools, at a uniform tax rate for an equal length of school term for all schools in the county, and since the county is the absolute unit in administrative control, all the pupils now completing the work of the elementary schools of the county, both rural and city, enter the Wilmington high school upon the same terms.

Since the county is the unit of taxation for schools for an equal length of school term for all schools in the county, it now becomes practicable for the country child to have a teacher as well trained and as competent as the teacher who teaches the Wilmington child, and since the county is the unit in taxation for all bonds for the erection of public school buildings, it is now practicable for the country child to attend school in buildings that are just as comfortable, attractive and well equipped as the buildings in which the Wilmington child attends school.

It seems then that New Hanover stands easily at the forefront in the State in having made the county both the unit of taxation for schools and school administration, and in consequence has advanced far in providing for country child and city child with equality in educational opportunity.

The fact that a county may be large or small in geographic area, the fact that it may be largely rural or largely urban does in no way impair the soundness of the principle of the county as the absolute unit in taxable wealth for schools and school administration.

SUMMARY

(1) The only way whereby the country child can go to school each year as long as the city child, and to a teacher as capable, as well educated, and as well trained, lies in making the county itself the absolute unit in taxation for schools for an equal length of school term for all schools in the county, both rural and urban.

(2) The only way whereby the country child can attend school in a building that is as comfortable, attractive and as well equipped as the building to which the city child goes, lies in making the county the unit in consolidation and in taxation for all money borrowed or for all bonds issued for the erection of public school buildings.

(3) Only in proportion as the county is made the unit of taxation for schools, for money borrowed or for bonds for school buildings does it become practicable for communities of small population and small wealth to receive their just and equitable share of corporate wealth they have directly or indirectly helped to create in communities of larger wealth.

(4) Only as the county becomes the absolute unit in taxation for schools in consolidation and in administration of schools, does it become practicable to reduce the present duplication of costs in teaching forces, in school building and equipment and in office force.





(5) With different and independent boards of school administration, with different and independent superintendents of schools, quite naturally arise conflicts in aims and policies of school administration, in the employing of teachers, in the fixing of salary schedule, in the apportionment of the school building fund, in the transference of pupils from the county school to the town school.

(6) With separate and independent system of schools each with its own requirements of work to be met, it must seem clear that unification and standardization of work throughout the elementary and high schools of the county cannot be achieved.

(7) Only as the county becomes the unit in supervision and administration, can there be developed a unified, progressive and efficient system of county schools working with oneness of purpose, and unity of effort for the common and highest good of all the children of the county.

(8) And finally, the only plan whereby the county child can receive even approximate equality of educational opportunity with the child in Kinston and LaGrange lies in making Lenoir County one unit in taxation for school for an equal length of school term, one unit in school consolidation, one unit in taxation for all money borrowed and for all bonds issued for the erection of consolidated school buildings; and one unit in school administration and supervision with one board of control, and with one superintendent of all the schools of the county.

Lenoir Co, N.C.
School Consolidation Survey
Lenoir County Map

The three large circles represent the standard high schools under the proposed county-wide plan.

The smaller circle in the northeastern section of the county represents the Contentnea Certified High School.

The three smallest circles in the southern section of the county represent standard elementary schools.

Arrows indicate the three standard elementary schools and the Certified High School from which pupils are to be transported to the Kinston County High School.





CHAPTER XV
PLAN PROPOSED FOR COUNTY-WIDE CONSOLIDATION
AND SCHOOL BUILDING

1. WOODINGTON SOUTHWEST CENTER.

2. DEEP RUN CENTER.

3. MOSS HILL CENTER.

4. CONTENTNEA CONSOLIDATED SCHOOL CENTER.

5. PINK HILL CENTER.

6. LAGRANGE CENTER.

7. KINSTON COUNTY HIGH SCHOOL CENTER.

From the foregoing it will be seen that all of the forty-five white schools in Lenoir County are to be consolidated into seven schools. In this county-wide program accredited four-year high school instruction is amply provided for all the children of the county at Pink Hill, LaGrange and at Kinston. As the population increases, in these various consolidated centers, it may become practical within a few years for all of the consolidated rural schools to do well—not only standard elementary instruction, but one or two years of efficient high school instruction.

I. WOODINGTON-SOUTHWEST CENTER

A. Schools to be Consolidated

(1) The following schools are to comprise the Woodington-Southwest Center; Maple Grove, Lynwood, McGowan, Millbranch, Coahoma and the Woodington three-teacher school, a total of seven schools—three one-teacher, three two-teacher, and the Woodington school.

(2) School enrollment in these schools for 1922-23 was 372 elementary and 14 high school pupils, with 17 pupils of high school grade going to Kinston school.

B. Proposed Plan for Woodington-Southwest Center

(1) That the Woodington-Southwest school be made a modern elementary school with ten teachers.

(2) That all pupils above the seventh grade (thirty-one in number) be transported to the Kinston county high school.

(3) That the school term be made eight months.

(4) That a modern brick building with ten classrooms, principal's office, library and an ample auditorium be erected.

(5) That a modern teacher's home be erected upon the school site.

(6) That a school site of not less than six acres be provided.

II. DEEP RUN CENTER

A. Schools to be Consolidated

(1) The following schools are to comprise the Deep Run Center: Deep Run, Trent, Wooten, Smith, Oak Grove, Tyndall, and the Piney Grove school—a total of seven schools; three one-teacher schools, three two-teacher schools, and the Deep Run three-teacher school.

(2) Total school enrollment in these schools for 1922-23 was 514 below the seventh grade. There were no pupils enrolled above the seventh grade.

B. Proposed Plan for Deep Run Center

(1) That for the present Deep Run be made a modern, up-to-date elementary school.

(2) That all pupils above the seventh grade be brought to Kinston. There are none above the seventh grade at present.

(3) That a modern brick building with thirteen classrooms, principal's office, library and auditorium be erected.

(4) That a modern teachers’ home be erected upon the school site.

(5) That in proportion as pupils advance through the grades that the Deep Run school be developed into a Junior high school, taking care of grades from one to nine.

(6) That a school site of not less than from six to eight acres be provided.

III. MOSS HILL CENTER

A. Schools to be Consolidated

(1) The following schools are to comprise the Moss Hill Center: Bland, Sandy Bottom, Byrd's and the Moss Hill school, a total of four schools; one one-teacher school, two two-teacher schools, and the Moss Hill four-teacher school.

(2) Total enrollment in these local schools for 1922-23, 290 elementary and 29 high school pupils.

B. Proposed Plan for Moss Hill

(1) That for the present Moss Hill be made a modern, up-to-date elementary school with eight teachers.

(2) That all pupils now above the seventh grade (twenty-nine in all) be transported to Kinston.

(3) That a modern eight-room building, with a principal's office, library, and auditorium be erected.

(4) That a modern teachers’ home be built upon school site.

(5) School term of eight months.

(6) School site of not less than six acres be provided.

IV. CONTENTNEA CONSOLIDATED SCHOOL

A. Schools to be Consolidated

(1) The following schools are to comprise the Contentnea Consolidated School: Sharon-Grainger, Bethel, Hugo, Contentnea, Airy Grove, Oakdale, Dunn, Barwick, and the Sand Hill school, a total of ten schools; two one-teacher, six two-teacher, and two three-teacher schools.

(2) Total enrollment in local schools for 1922-23, 533 elementary and 15 going to Kinston, total elementary enrollment of 548; 28 of high school grade in local schools, while 18 of high school grade attending high school, making a total of approximately 600 available for this school.

B. Proposed Plan for Contentnea Consolidated School

(1) That for the present the Contentnea Consolidated School be made a modern certified high school with sixteen teachers.





(2) That all pupils above the ninth grade be brought to the Kinston County High School.

(3) That a modern brick building with sixteen classrooms, principals’ office, library, and auditorium be erected.

(4) That a modern home be built upon school site for teachers.

(5) That a school site of not less than eight acres be provided.

(6) That the school term be eight months.

V. PINK HILL CENTER

A. Schools to Comprise the Pink Hill Center

(1) The Pink Hill Consolidated School, Pine Forest, and the Taylor schools.

(2) Total enrollment in these schools for 1922-23: elementary 453, high school 78, total 531.

B. Proposed Plan for the Pink Hill Center

(1) That the present Pink Hill Center be extended to include both the Pine Forest and the Taylor schools.

(2) That Pink Hill be made a first-class accredited high school with an adequate number of teachers for academic and vocational subjects.

(3) That the present building with proper modifications be used for the elementary school.

(4) That a modern high school building with eight classrooms, principal's office, library, food laboratory, sewing laboratory, dining-room, chemical laboratory and auditorium be erected.

(5) That a modern teachers’ home be erected upon the school site.

(6) School term be made nine months, one month of which is to be maintained by community local tax.

VI. LAGRANGE CENTER

A. Schools to Comprise the LaGrange Center

(1) Institute, Aldridge, Oakview, Fairview, Hickory Grove, part of the Farm Valley school, and the LaGrange school.

(2) Total enrollment in these schools for 1922-23, including the LaGrange school: elementary 659, high school 131.

B. Proposed Plan for LaGrange Center

(1) Modern high school building with twelve classrooms, principal's office, library, food laboratory, sewing laboratory, dining-room, chemical laboratory, and auditorium.

VII. KINSTON COUNTY HIGH SCHOOL CENTER

Proposed Plan for the Kinston Center

(1) Rural schools brought to the Kinston Center: Daly, part of Farm Valley, New Hope, Fairfield, White's, and Wheat Swamp.

(2) Total elementary enrollment in these local schools for 1922-23—295 pupils.

(3) All pupils above the seventh grade from the Moss Hill, Deep Run, and Woodington Center, and all pupils completing the ninth grade at the Contentnea Consolidated Center be brought into the Kinston County High School.

(4) Modern high school building erected upon unit plan so that additional classrooms may be added as needed for the next several years without interfering with the foundation, lighting or symmetry of building.

(5) Since twelve classrooms for high school instruction are now in use, it may seem advisable in view of the probable immediate growth in high school enrollment, if the county-wide plan be effected to erect the first unit of this high school building with twenty-two classrooms, principal's office, library, physical and chemical laboratories, general science and biological laboratories, apparatus and storage room, three rooms for home economics, medical inspection room, two rooms for shop and agriculture, two teachers’ rest rooms, and an auditorium with a seating capacity of 1,000.





COAHOMA

LYNWOOD

MAPLE GROVE

WOODINGTON

MILL BRANCH

McGOWAN

WALLER

WOODINGTON CONSOLIDATED SCHOOL
This proposed school will include all schools in the group above.





PINEY GROVE

SMITH

OAK GROVE

DEEP RUN

TRENT

WOOTEN

TYNDALL

DEEP RUN CONSOLIDATED SCHOOL
This proposed school will include all schools in the group above.





SANDY BOTTOM

BLAND

BYRD

MOSS HILL

MOSS HILL CONSOLIDATED SCHOOL
This proposed school will include all schools in the group above.





CONTENTNEA

HUGO

OAK DALE

GRAINGER

BARWICK

SHARON

AIRY GROVE

SAND HILL

DUNN

CONTENTNEA CONSOLIDATED SCHOOL
This proposed school will include all schools in the group above.





PINK HILL

PINE FOREST

TAYLOR

PINK HILL CONSOLIDATED SCHOOL
This proposed school will include the three schools shown above.





FAIRVIEW

INSTITUTE

OAK VIEW

FARM VALLEY

ALDRIDGE

HICKORY GROVE

LA GRANGE CONSOLIDATED SCHOOL
This proposed school will include all schools in the group above.





FARM VALLEY

DALY

WHITE'S

FAIRFIELD

NEW HOPE

WHEAT SWAMP

KINSTON COUNTY HIGH SCHOOL—FIRST UNIT
Grades 1-7 in schools above to attend Kinston Elementary Schools, Grades 7-11 to attend Kinston County High School.





CONTENTNEA

MOSS HILL

KINSTON COUNTY HIGH SCHOOL

DEEP RUN

WOODINGTON

All pupils above the ninth grade in the proposed Contentnea Consolidated School and all pupils above the seventh grade in the proposed Deep Run, Woodington and Moss Hill Standard Elementary Schools are to be transported to the proposed Kinston County High School.

CHAPTER XVI
WHAT WILL THIS PROPOSED PLAN MEAN TO THE CHILDREN IN EACH CONSOLIDATED CENTER?

1. TO THE CHILDREN OF THE WOODINGTON-SOUTHWEST CENTER.

2. TO THE CHILDREN OF THE DEEP RUN, MOSS HILL AND PINK HILL CENTER.

3. TO THE CHILDREN OF THE KINSTON CENTER.

4. TO THE CHILDREN OF THE CONTENTNEA CONSOLIDATED CENTER.

5. TO THE CHILDREN OF THE LAGRANGE CENTER.

I. TO THE CHILDREN OF THE WOODINGTON-SOUTHWEST CENTER

(1) Practically a Teacher for Each Grade. Under the present plan in the Lynwood school one teacher alone has to teach six grades, six times the number the best equipped teacher in Kinston or LaGrange has to teach. In the Maple Grove school, one teacher has to teach seven grades, or seven times the number of grades the best equipped teacher in the LaGrange or Kinston school has to teach. In the Waller school one teacher has to teach five grades or five times the number of grades each teacher in Kinston or LaGrange has to teach. In the Millbranch and the McGowan schools each teacher has to teach four grades, or four times the number each teacher in LaGrange or Kinston has to teach, and in the Woodington school each teacher has to teach 3⅓ grades. Under the proposed plan one teacher will have to teach practically one grade only.

(2) Better Educated and Better Trained Teachers. Of the twelve teachers now employed in* these schools, one of them has completed the work of the seventh grade only; one the eighth grade only; two the tenth grade only; five the high school only; while only 33⅓ per cent of them have even attended college. Under the proposed plan, with one teacher for a grade, thereby enabling each teacher to do a type of work that is encouraging to her and acceptable to the community; with a modern teacher's home on the school site, providing for each teacher a comfortable, quiet and private room in which she can make careful preparation for each day's work, and providing congenial and stimulating companionship with her coworkers in the school; providing a school term of eight months, thereby making it practical to pay an annual salary that is in keeping with the academic and professional preparation of our best equipped teachers—with these many advantages resulting from this proposed plan, it will now become entirely practical to employ for these children teachers who are as well equipped in every way as those who now teach the Kinston or the LaGrange children.

(3) A Richer and a More Practical Course of Study. Under the present plan the teachers’ daily schedule in 58 per cent† of these schools shows no provision for the teaching of writing; in 71 per cent no provision for the teaching of civics; in 43 per cent no provision for agriculture; in 14 per cent no provision for history; in 100 per cent no provision for music; and in 100 per cent no provision for domestic arts. Under the proposed plan the pupils will have ample opportunity to study effectively not only the three R's (reading,

* Based upon the County Superintendent's records for 1922-23.† Based on County Superintendent's records for 1921-22.



writing, and arithmetic), but also geography, history, health, music, civics, nature study, agriculture, drawing, and domestic arts.

(4) More Time Each Day for Important Subjects. Under the present plan in the subject of reading for each of the first three grades, the pupils in this group are having on the average each day 23 minutes only, the pupils in LaGrange 63, and the pupils in Kinston an average of 50 minutes. In writing the pupils in this group are having, in each of the first three grades, an average each day of 6.4 minutes only, the pupils in LaGrange 22, and the pupils in Kinston 18 minutes. In arithmetic the pupils in this group are having in each of the fifth, sixth, and seventh grades a daily average of 13.4 minutes only, the pupils in Kinston 37, and the pupils in LaGrange a daily average of 45 minutes. In history in each of the fifth, sixth, and seventh grades, the pupils in this group are having an average of 10.5 minutes only each day, the pupils in Kinston 30, and the pupils in LaGrange 41 minutes daily. In geography in each of the above grades the pupils in this group are having a daily average of 10.5 minutes only, while the pupils in both Kinston and LaGrange are having 37 minutes daily. Under the proposed plan it will become entirely practical for the pupils in this group to have approximately as much time each day on these subjects as the pupils in either Kinston or LaGrange.

(5) A Longer School Term. Under the present plan the pupils in this group are now going to school for six months only each year. Since it requires from eight to nine months to complete a grade of work the pupils cannot complete the work of a grade in one school term. It requires from two to three months of each new session to complete the work of the grade they were in during the previous session. This clearly means a loss of from two to three months in the life of each pupil each year in his preparation for high school, for college, or for the ordinary duties of life. A child entering school at six years of age in any one of the schools in this group and going to school each year for six months only will, after having completed his twelfth year, have gone to school 42 months only, and will most likely not have completed the sixth grade. The child entering school at six years old in either Kinston or LaGrange and going to school for a school term of nine months each year will, after having completed his twelfth year have gone to school 63 months; that is, the Kinston or the LaGrange child will have 21 months more schooling at beginning of his thirteenth year than the child in any one of the schools within this group. Under the proposed plan these country children in their eight months school term will be placed more nearly on an equal footing with their neighbors and friends in Kinston and LaGrange.

(6) Better School Attendance. For 1921-22 78.4 per cent only of the revised census attended these local schools against 83.1 per cent for the county as a whole, and against 91.1 per cent for the Pink Hill consolidated school district. This means that 22 per cent of the future citizenship of this territory is now being untouched and uninfluenced by these schools in their daily process of making men and women for the community, the county, and the State.

Under the proposed plan with well educated and well trained teachers, imbued with the spirit of community service, and endowed with the capacity of community leadership, capable of making school work seem most worth while, and school life most attractive, it is a reasonable expectation that this large percentage of children who are not being reached by the schools will be noticeably reduced, while the percentage of this revised census kept in school every day will be considerably increased.

(7) In the Amount of Education Received by the Pupils. In this group 60.1 per cent of the pupils in the first three grades, against 41.8 per cent of

Kinston and 35.5 per cent of the LaGrange enrollment. In this group 81.8 per cent is in the first five grades, against 63 per cent only for Kinston, and 59 per cent for the LaGrange enrollment. In this group 92.5 per cent of the total enrollment is within the first seven grades, in LaGrange 76 per cent, in Kinston 71 per cent. In this group 7.5 per cent only of the total enrollment is above the seventh grade, in LaGrange 19, in Kinston 21 per cent. Under this present plan then it seems clear that 81.8 per cent of even those enrolled is starting out in life with a fifth grade education only. And this fact is going to play a vital part in determining the economic, moral, and civic worth of the future citizenship growing up in these communities.

But under the proposed plan with teachers well educated and professionally trained, who know how to organize a school, to grade and classify pupils so each will be put where he can do the best work; with each well trained teacher devoting her time to one grade only; with pupils studying subjects they are interested in and closely related to their daily needs; with school work and school life now more attractive to the pupils; with ample opportunities for friendly competition in classroom work, in literary and athletic contests; with a school term increased from six to eight months; with pupils making a grade each year; with these advantages that will follow the carrying out of this proposed plan, we may reasonably expect to see not 81 per cent of the future citizens starting out in life with a fifth grade education only, but with the completion of the seventh grade of the elementary school, and with at least one or two years of splendid high school instruction.

(8) Accredited Four-year High School Instruction. Under the present plan even the 7.5 per cent of the pupils enrolled above the seventh grade are not receiving accredited high school instruction. Because of the small school population in each community, because of the small number of teachers in each school, accredited high school advantages are neither practical nor possible. But under the proposed plan, and as a result of this larger unit of consolidation in this county-wide plan, the pupils in this group, as previously seen, will not only enjoy advantages in a modern elementary school equal to those now enjoyed by the children of Kinston and LaGrange, but upon completing the work in this modern elementary school will be transported to the Kinston County High School, and given high school advantages upon the same footing as the children of Kinston.

(9) A Modern Elementary School Building. As a result of this larger unit of consolidation in this county-wide plan of consolidation, the pupils in this group will enjoy the building facilities equal to those now enjoyed by the children of Kinston and LaGrange.

II. TO THE CHILDREN OF THE DEEP RUN, MOSS HILL AND THE
PINK HILL CENTERS

As the conditions and educational needs to be met at Deep Run and the Moss Hill Centers are similar to those to be met at the Woodington-Southwest Center, and as the plans proposed for the Deep Run and Moss Hill Centers are practically the same as those proposed for the Woodington Center, the pupils at Deep Run and Moss Hill will enjoy educational advantages and opportunities similar to those to be provided at Woodington-Southwest Center.

The Pink Hill Center, however, because of the distance from any other large center, the larger territory it has to serve, the large number of pupils it will have to provide for, will quite naturally have a larger faculty than either Moss Hill or Deep Run or Woodington-Southwest. Under the proposed plan Pink Hill is to have an additional brick building, a teachers’ home, and within a few years will in all probability have sixteen teachers in its faculty.





III. TO THE COUNTRY CHILDREN COMING INTO KINSTON, AND
TO THE CHILDREN LIVING IN KINSTON

(1) To the 295 elementary pupils coming into the elementary department of the Kinston School from the Daly, Farm Valley, New Hope, Fairfield, White and the Wheat Swamp School, the plan will mean:

(a) A teacher for each grade. Under the present plan two teachers alone in the Daly school are teaching six grades, in the Farm Valley school three teachers are trying to teach nine grades, in the New Hope school two teachers are attempting to teach seven grades, in the Wheat Swamp and in the Fairfield school one teacher is trying to teach all the seven grades of the elementary school, while in White's school one teacher is having to teach five grades.*

(b) Better educated and better trained teachers. Under the present plan, of the† ten teachers in the foregoing schools, not one is a college graduate, only two of the number have been to college for as many as two years, three have finished high school only, while one has not gone beyond the seventh grade.

(c) Fewer daily recitations for each teacher and more time for the pupil on each important subject studied.

(d) School term of at least eight months.

(e) Less waste of the pupil's time at undirected seat work.

(f) Larger number of pupils in each class, thereby providing ample opportunities for team work in the classroom and in literary contests.

(g) A larger per cent of the school population enrolled, larger per cent of the enrollment in daily attendance, thereby decreasing or preventing illiteracy in the community.

(h) A larger per cent of this rural population completing the common school branches, thus making a larger number of its future citizens more efficient.

(i) A modern, attractive, comfortable and well equipped elementary school building in which to attend school.

(j) Pupils living too far to walk, transported in a comfortable auto truck to this modern school.

(2) To the children coming into the Kinston County High School from the Woodington-Southwest, Moss Hill and Deep Run Centers, Farm Valley School and the Contentnea Consolidated School, the plan will mean:

(a) A teacher for each high school grade. Under the present plan these pupils are being taught by teachers who have to teach from three to four grades each day.

(b) Well educated and professionally trained teachers. Of all the pupils above the seventh grade enrolled in these schools for the session of 1922-23 the record does not show any of them are taught by a teacher who is a graduate of an A College.

(c) A minimum school term of eight months. When once these pupils have begun the session's work they will quite probably continue for the full nine months school term.

(d) Pupils completing approximately a high school grade each year, and completing their four-year high school course almost at the age they are completing the elementary school now.

(e) Larger per cent of rural pupils completing high school, thereby meaning a better educated and a better trained citizenship for the county.

(f) Pupils enabled to complete an accredited first-class four-year high school without having to leave home, paying board or tuition or both. Pupils living too far to walk will ride each day to and from the Kinston County High School in a comfortable auto-truck.

* Based upon reports for 1921-22.† Based upon reports for 1922-23.

(3) To the high school pupils living in Kinston and the high school pupils coming from the consolidated rural school centers, the plan will mean:

(a) Modern high school building, adequately constructed and adequately equipped for the most efficient type of work.

(b) Boys and girls from Kinston and the surrounding territory having high school advantages in probably the largest high school east of Raleigh with the exception of Wilmington.

For the school year 1922-23 Goldsboro had 328 high school pupils taught by 13 teachers; Wilson 275 pupils taught by 15 teachers; Rocky Mount 486 pupils and 16 teachers; Elizabeth City 324 pupils and 13 teachers; Raleigh 842 pupils and 27 teachers, and Kinston 380 pupils and 16 teachers.

Since Kinston, now has 380 high school pupils, and since approximately 50 are now ready to come into the Kinston County High School from the rural centers previously referred to, it will be seen that the Kinston County High School would be able to begin this present session of 1923-24 with approximately 430 high school pupils, and a high school faculty of 17* efficient high school teachers on the basis of daily attendance of 30 pupils per teacher.

However, before the close of this present ten-year period, the Kinston County High School, will in all probability have gone far beyond this number of 430 high school pupils, and 17 high school teachers. Beginning with 1907-08, and for each five-year period since through 1922-23, the ratio of the number of high school to elementary school pupils in the Kinston school has ranged from 18 to 26, or an average ratio for each five-year period, of 21 per cent. The present rural elementary school enrollment from which Kinston, under the proposed plan, would draw high school pupils is 2019. If the Kinston County High School should draw 21 per cent of this number it would have 424 high school pupils from this rural school enrollment alone, and this number added to the 380 enrolled in the Kinston High School for 1922-23 would make a total high school enrollment in the Kinston County High School of 804 pupils.

But just how many years before 21 per cent of this rural elementary school enrollment would be in the Kinston County High School it is difficult to estimate, and especially so since less than 4 per cent of this enrollment is now in the high school grades.

An enrollment then of 804 pupils in the Kinston County High School may reasonably be expected before the close of this present ten-year period or before 1933, even though the school population and school enrollment in Kinston Township and in the surrounding rural territory should remain where it is today. However, judged by the past three ten-year periods the population in Kinston Township, as well as in the surrounding rural territory, is going to increase.

As will be seen from the last Federal census, the white population of Lenoir County has increased by an average of approximately 25 per cent for each decade since 1890, while the population of Kinston Township, including Kinston, has increased by an average of 39.6 for each of the past three ten-year periods. Should the school population and school enrollment in the rural territory surrounding Kinston make this same increase of 25 per cent within the present decade the total white rural school enrollment from which the Kinston High School would draw pupils, would be the present rural elementary enrollment of 2,019 pupils plus 25 per cent or an enrollment of 2,524. Should the white school population and white school enrollment in Kinston Township make this same increase of 39.6 per cent within the present ten-year period the total Kinston elementary enrollment from which the Kinston County High

*Including two industrial teachers.



School would draw pupils would be its present elementary enrollment of approximately 1,400 plus 39.6 per cent, or a total of 1,954 elementary pupils.

Therefore on this basis of increase in total population, we may reasonably expect within the present ten-year period a total elementary enrollment of 4,478 from which the Kinston County High School would draw pupils. And should the Kinston County High School enroll 21 per cent of this number its total high school enrollment by the close of the present ten-year period would reach 940.

On the basis of elementary school enrollment and the per cent of increase in this enrollment for the past five-year period, we get a different conclusion as to the number of pupils to be enrolled in the Kinston County High School within the present five-year period.

The official report of the county superintendent shows the increase in the total white rural elementary school enrollment for the past five-year period to be 26 per cent, while the official reports of the superintendent of the Kinston school shows the increase in the total while elementary enrollment to be approximately 26 per cent.

The present rural elementary enrollment from which the Kinston County High School would draw pupils is 2019, and should this enrollment increase by this ratio of 26 per cent this present rural elementary enrollment would become, during this five-year period, 2,019 plus 26 per cent or a total of 2,544. And should the Kinston County High School draw 21 per cent of this number, its enrollment for this rural territory alone would be 534.

Since the elementary enrollment for Kinston Township for 1922-23 was approximately 1,400, should this enrollment increase by the ratio of 26 per cent, then this present elementary enrollment would become, during this present five-year period, 26 per cent larger, making a total of 1,764 pupils. And should the Kinston County High School enroll 21 per cent of this number, its enrollment for Kinston Township alone would be 370 pupils.

Therefore, on the basis of elementary school enrollment and its percentage of increase during the past five-year period, we may reasonably expect by 1929 a high school enrollment in the Kinston County High School of 534 from the surrounding rural territory, and 370 from Kinston Township, making a grand total of 904 high school pupils. Allowing for an enrollment of 30 high school pupils per teacher, there would be an efficient high school faculty of 30 members.

From the foregoing paragraphs the following points seem clear: (a) That with the present enrollment in the Kinston High School, and the present number of pupils in the high school grades in the rural territory adjoining Kinston Township, the Kinston County High School, under the proposed county-wide plan, would begin operation for the session of 1923-24 with at least 430 pupils; (b) assuming that the Kinston County High School will draw 21 per cent of its total elementary enrollment, the total enrollment in the Kinston County High School during the present ten-year period will reach 875 even though the total population in Kinston Township and the surrounding rural territory remains just where it is today; (c) calculated upon the basis of increase in total population during each of the past three ten-year periods, the total enrollment in the Kinston County High School by the close of the present ten-year period will reach 940; (d) calculated upon the basis of increase in elementary school enrollment made during the past five-year period, the total enrollment in the Kinston County High School by 1929 will reach a total of 904 pupils.

It is needless to suggest that a high school enrollment of 430, 875, 904 or 940 high school pupils, with an efficient high school faculty of 17, 27, 34, or 39 members, will be able to meet amply the outstanding purposes of a real modern high school. With this number of high school pupils and high school teachers

there will be strong courses for those wishing to enter college to prepare themselves for the various professions, and there will be strong courses for those preparing for various industrial vocations.

Sallie, endowed with the musical gift, will not be turned away, because there will be a well planned course in music, taught by experts.

Mary, with the business turn of mind, will not be turned away, for there will be a strong commercial course with experts to teach her commercial arithmetic, bookkeeping, typewriting, and stenography.

Fannie, ambitious to teach school, but unable to go to college, will not be turned away, for there will be provided a strong course in teacher-training that will enable her to teach school.

Bobbie, the ambitious country boy with the native endowment of a master mechanic will not be turned away, for he will be taught by experts, mechanical drawing, manual training, and shop work, and other essential subjects that will enable him to continue his preparation in any of the best mechanical colleges in the country.

Johnnie, the sturdy and mentally alert country boy, who loves country life and country things, who wishes to become a scientific farmer, will not be turned away from the Kinston County High School, for there will be experts in this school who will give him instructions in vocational agriculture that will prepare him for successful entrance into our best agricultural colleges in the nation, or if he cannot go to college, will give him that practical instruction in better methods of farming, better methods of farm management, and better methods of marketing the crop he grows, that will enable him to become a successful farmer, and live a happier and more efficient life upon the farm.

Julia, the girl with the practical turn of mind for home-making and home-keeping, whose ambition it is to make the home, whether in town or in country, all that the home should be in comfort, healthfulness, attractiveness and beauty, will not be turned away, for she will be taught by experts in the art and science of home-making and home-keeping.

With 940 high school boys and girls from the town and the county, guided, directed and inspired by from 35 to 40 efficient high school teachers, with a course of study broad enough and practical enough to enable each pupil to find himself and to equip himself to a fair degree of efficiency for successful and happy living; with 940 country boys and town boys, country girls and town girls mingling and comingling day after day in classroom, literary contests and in athletic contests of all sorts, each coming to recognize, appreciate and profit by the sterling qualities in the life of the other, what will such a school, and such advantages mean to the future economic, intellectual and social life of the future citizenship of Kinston and of Lenoir County as well?

IV. TO THE CHILDREN OF THE CONTENTNEA CONSOLIDATED
SCHOOL CENTER

The needs and conditions to be met at the Contentnea Consolidated School Center are somewhat similar to those at the other consolidated rural school centers under the proposed plan for the county.

However, owing to the relatively large number of pupils it will enroll, the relatively large number of teachers it will employ, and owing to the further fact that it is located on one of the finest hard-surface roads in the State, and only from six to ten miles from Kinston, the growing county seat, presents an interesting situation and one, too, likely to be found in many counties of the State where county-wide consolidation is attempted.

The plan proposed for this Contentnea Consolidated School Center calls for the consolidation of ten schools. According to the November budget from





1922-23, made by the county superintendent, these ten local schools had a total elementary enrollment of 533 pupils, and a total high school enrollment of 28 pupils. According to the statement of the superintendent of the Kinston schools, 15 pupils came from those schools into the elementary department, and 18 pupils into the high school department of the Kinston school. Should all of these pupils, including those enrolled in the local schools, and in the Kinston school be brought to the Contentnea Consolidated School, there would be a total elementary enrollment of 548 pupils and a high school enrollment of 46 pupils, thereby making a total elementary and high school enrollment of 596 pupils. Allowing an elementary enrollment of 40 pupils per teacher, approximately 14 elementary teachers would be required, and allowing a high school enrollment of 30 pupils per teacher, the high school department, in view of the probable immediate increase in number of high school pupils upon effecting this consolidation, might begin the session of 1924-25 with two high school teachers.

In view of the above facts, the vital question quite naturally arises, Shall the Contentnea Consolidated School undertake to become a modern and a really efficient certified high school, transporting its pupils above the ninth grade to the Kinston County High School for their last two years of accredited high school work, or shall it undertake to become an accredited, modern efficient four-year high school? Were the Contentnea Consolidated School a single and separate unit of consolidation within itself without vital relation to a unified county-wide plan of consolidation, and a unified county system of schools, it would not be difficult to answer the above question in favor of making the Contentnea school a four-year accredited high school. It would be the best that could be done under such circumstances. But the Contentnea school is not a separate and isolated unit of consolidation, it is a vital link in the county-wide plan of consolidation. Therefore the important question inevitably arises, Cannot the educational needs of all the children within this group of schools be far better met by making the Contentnea Consolidated School a modern, and a really efficient certified high school, transporting all pupils above the ninth grade to the Kinston County High School, than they can be by attempting to make this school a modern, really efficient, accredited four-year high school? The answer to these vitally important questions will depend upon what we consider the outstanding purposes of a real modern high school, and the possibilities offered by the Contentnea Consolidated School, and the Kinston County High School in reaching these outstanding purposes.

Modern authorities, in the field of education, hold the view that for a high school to be really efficient it must undertake to reach these two vital and outstanding purposes: (a) By bringing together into one school enough high school pupils to justify the employment of enough well educated and professionally trained high school teachers, to provide enough high school courses to enable practically every type of pupil attending school to find out what he wants to do and is best fitted to do; and (b) Having led these pupils to discover themselves, their talents, and the things they most want to, to equip them along these lines to a fair degree of efficiency. If the foregoing be admitted as sound and reasonable purposes for an efficient high school to measure up to, then to what extent will it be either practical or possible for the Contentnea Consolidated School to meet them? Is it reasonable to believe that the Contentnea Consolidated School can now, in the immediate, or in the distant future, measure up to these essential purposes of a high school as well as the Kinston County High School? Will this consolidated school in years to come have enough high school pupils to justify the employment of enough well educated and professionally trained high school teachers to provide enough different courses to enable all the pupils within this group of schools to find themselves, to discover the lines of their greatest interest and then equip them along these lines?

Since there are now available for the high school department of the Contentnea Consolidated School only 46 pupils, hardly enough to meet the lowest requirement for an accredited three-teacher high school, it must appear self-evident that the number of different courses than can be given is very limited, and that the opportunities afforded these 46 high school pupils for finding the lines along which their talents lie are very meagre indeed.

“But,” says one of the ardent supporters of the Contentnea Consolidated School. “We know we cannot have much of a high school to begin with, but give us a little time and we will grow into a real, sure enough high school amply able to meet all the outstanding purposes of an efficient high school.” Let us see the basis of his hopes. At present 8 per cent only of the total elementary enrollment within this group of ten schools is doing high school work. Let us increase this 8 per cent doing high school work to 21 per cent, which is the average per cent of its elementary enrollment that Kinston has been drawing into its high school for each five-year period for the past fifteen years. Now 21 per cent of this elementary enrollment of 548 pupils gives us 115 high school pupils. A high school enrollment of 115 pupils means approximately six high school teachers only. Therefore we could not reasonably hope to have within the next few years more than six high school teachers at the most in the Contentnea Consolidated School, even on the basis that 21 per cent of the total elementary enrollment would be in the high school.

But again, during each ten-year period for the past several years the total rural population of the county has increased on the average of 25 per cent. Should the elementary school enrollment in the Contentnea Consolidated School increase by this same ratio of 25 per cent within the present ten-year period, then by the end of this period instead of an elementary enrollment of 548 we would have this enrollment increased by 25 per cent or a total elementary enrollment in this consolidated school of 685 pupils. Should this consolidated school enroll 21 per cent of this number above the seventh grade, we would then have in this high school 144 high school pupils only. This would mean approximately eight high school teachers only, and certainly not more than nine high school teachers.

With the foregoing facts in mind, is it reasonable to believe that in the Contentnea Consolidated School, with its 46 high school pupils and two high school teachers; with its 115 high school pupils and seven high school teachers, or with its 150 high school pupils and eight or nine high school teachers, including teachers for vocational subjects, the pupils will have an equal chance with the children in the nearby Kinston County High School with its from 900 to 1,000 high school pupils and with its from 33 to 40 high school faculty? Which school is it reasonable to believe offers the finest possibilities to the high school pupils from the rural communities; offers a greater number of opportunities to each individual pupil to find what he is best fitted to do in life, and having found what he is best fitted to do, to equip himself to a fair degree of efficiency along this chosen line?

Sallie is a young girl with native musical endowment. She wants a good course in music, but is informed by the principal of the school that because of the limited number of high school teachers he is unable to provide a special course in music.

Mary is a young, ambitious girl with a turn for business. She wishes a course in bookkeeping, typewriting and stenography, but is informed by the principal that because of the limited number of high school teachers he will be unable to provide this course for her.

Bobbie is a sturdy, ambitious country boy, is handy with tools, has the native endowment of a master mechanic. He wishes a course in industrial arts, manual training, shop work, etc., but is informed by the principal that because of the limited number of high school teachers he is unable to provide this course for him.





Fannie is a young, ambitious girl, endowed with the gift for teaching. Probably her parents will never be able to send her off to college to give her the professional training she needs. She asks the principal of the school to give her a course in teacher-training that will enable her to secure a certificate for teaching, but he informs her that because of the limited number of high school teachers he is unable to provide this course for her.

And thus it is that the Contentnea Consolidated High School, because of the size of the school population from which it draws its high school enrollment, because of the number of pupils in its high school department for some years to come, the limited number of high school teachers it can afford to employ now or in the future, the consequent limited number of different high school courses it is practical for its number of high school teachers to teach, cannot hope to meet now, or even in the near future, in an adequate way, the educational needs of all its high school pupils.

V. TO THE COUNTRY CHILDREN COMING INTO LAGRANGE, AND
TO THE CHILDREN LIVING IN LAGRANGE

(1) To the country children below the seventh grade coming into the elementary department of the LaGrange School. These pupils, that now constitute a rural enrollment below the seventh grade of 362 pupils for 1922-23, will come from Institute, Aldridge, Oakview, Fairview, Hickory Grove and part of the elementary enrollment in the Farm Valley School. To these pupils the plan will mean:

(a) A teacher for each grade. Under the present plan three teachers alone at each* of the schools, Institute and Farm Valley are trying to teach nine grades of work or as many grades of work as nine teachers are having to teach in the LaGrange school, while in the Fairview school one teacher alone is having to teach all the seven grades or as many grades as seven teachers in the LaGrange school.

(b) Better educated and better trained teachers. Under the present plan not one of the thirteen teachers employed in these schools is a college graduate, and not one of the number has attended a Class A college for as many as three years, while one of the thirteen is a graduate of the tenth grade only.

(c) This plan will mean that the country children below the seventh grade, coming into the LaGrange school, and the children below the seventh grade living in LaGrange will have educational advantages approximately equal to those enjoyed by the children in the elementary department of the Kinston County High School.

(2) To the high school pupils living in LaGrange and the high school pupils coming into LaGrange from the adjoining rural communities:

(a) A modern high school building adequately constructed and amply equipped for the most efficient type of work.

(b) Boys and girls from LaGrange and the surrounding territory having the advantages of a standard four-year high school.

Since LaGrange already has a high school enrollment for 1923-24 of approximately 120 pupils, and since approximately 25 high school pupils are now ready to come into the LaGrange High School from the surrounding rural schools that are to be consolidated with it, the LaGrange High School will be ready to begin its session's work with approximately 145 high school pupils, and approximately nine efficient and well trained high school teachers.

But before the close of the present ten-year period, the LaGrange High School, if this consolidation be effected, will in all probability have gone far beyond this number of 145 high school pupils and nine high school teachers.

* Based on County Superintendent's report for 1921-22.

For each five-year period since 1912-13, the LaGrange High School has enrolled on the average 22 per cent of its elementary enrollment. The elementary enrollment of pupils for 1922-23 in the surrounding rural schools that are to be consolidated with the LaGrange school is 362. Should the LaGrange High School enroll 22 per cent of this number, there would be 80 high school pupils from this rural school enrollment alone, and this number added to the present LaGrange High School enrollment of 120 would make a total high school enrollment for LaGrange of 200 pupils.

It is reasonable then to believe that within the present decade and under the proposed plan the LaGrange High School would enroll at least 200 pupils, even though the population of LaGrange and the surrounding territory should remain just where it is today—a thing not likely to happen.

But, as will be seen from the Federal census, the total population of Mosely Hall Township, including LaGrange, increased from 1890-1900 approximately 5 per cent; from 1900-1910 approximately 6 per cent, and from 1910-1920 approximately 21.5 per cent, or an average increase in population for each of the past three decades of 11 per cent.

Should the population of Mosely Hall Township increase during this present decade by as much as this average increase of 11 per cent, and should the white school enrollment increase at this same rate, then the white school elementary enrollment from this township, instead of being 311 as now, would be approximately 11 per cent more or 345. Should LaGrange High School enroll 22 per cent of this 345, there would then be in the LaGrange High School from Mosely Hall Township alone 117 high school pupils.

The Federal census shows that Institute Township, from which most of the rural children will come into LaGrange, increased in population from 1890-1900 approximately 27 per cent; from 1900-1910 approximately one-tenth of one per cent; and from 1910-1920 approximately 26 per cent, or an average increase for each of the past three decades of approximately 18 per cent.

Should the population of Institute Township increase during the present ten-year period by this average ratio of 18 per cent, and should the white school elementary enrollment increase in this same proportion, then the white school elementary enrollment from the surrounding territory that is to be consolidated with LaGrange instead of being 362 as now, would be 18 per cent more or 427. Should LaGrange High School enroll 22 per cent of this rural elementary enrollment, it would have from the surrounding rural territory alone 94 high school pupils, and this 94 rural high school pupils, and the 117 high school pupils enrolled from Mosely Hall Township would make a total enrollment in the LaGrange High School of approximately 211.

Allowing a high school enrollment of thirty pupils per teacher, and two additional industrial teachers, it will be seen that under the proposed plan the LaGrange High School, instead of having four high school teachers only as now, will in all probability have from ten to twelve high school teachers.

With 211 high school pupils and with from ten to twelve well trained high school teachers, the LaGrange High School will be able to do much in preparing its boys and girls either for college or for the successful discharge of the daily duties of efficient citizens.





CHAPTER XVII
HOW CAN THIS PROPOSED COUNTY-WIDE PLAN
BECOME OPERATIVE?

1. THROUGH A SPECIAL COUNTY-WIDE TAX FOR AN EIGHT MONTHS SCHOOL TERM FOR ALL SCHOOLS IN THE COUNTY.

2. THROUGH A COUNTY-WIDE BOND ISSUE FOR ALL NEW SCHOOL BUILDINGS ERECTED UNDER PROPOSED PLAN.

3. THROUGH SPECIAL CHARTER SCHOOLS BECOMING PART OF THE COUNTY SYSTEM OF SCHOOLS.

Let it be understood at the outset that it is not the purpose of this plan either to reduce the length of school term in any community already having nine months or to hinder any school from going to a nine months term. It is not the purpose of this plan to retard or to discourage community initiative, but rather to encourage it. But it is the purpose of this plan to equalize the length of school term in all schools of the county, rural and urban alike, through an eight months term. The law emphasizing this special county-wide tax is given in full below.

I. ARTICLE 20. SPECIAL COUNTY TAX IN WHICH PART OF
LOCAL TAXES MAY BE RETAINED

Sec. 242. Election Upon Petition of County Board of Education. “Upon the petition of the county board of education of any county, the county commissioners shall order an election to be held in the county to ascertain the will of the people whether there shall be levied on all taxable property and polls in the county a special county tax not to exceed fifty cents on the one hundred dollars valuation of property, to supplement the six months school fund of the county.”

Sec. 243. Rules Governing Election. The election shall be conducted for the county as nearly as may be under the “Rules Governing the Elections for Local Taxes,” as provided in this act.

Sec. 244. Maximum Tax Levy. In the event that a majority of the qualified voters of said election shall vote in favor of a special county tax, said tax shall be in addition to all taxes theretofore voted in any local tax or special charter district, except as provided in section 245. The maximum rate voted shall be annually levied and collected in each year in the same manner and at the same time as other taxes of the county are levied and collected, unless the county board of education shall petition for a lower rate. In that event the county commissioners shall levy the rate requested.

Sec. 245. The Rate in Local Tax or Special Charter Districts. Whenever the maximum special county tax rate levied or to be levied under the provisions of this article is less than 50 cents, each local tax, special charter or special school taxing district shall have the authority to levy an additional rate, not in excess of the local tax rate voted in the district, but the total special tax levy in said district, including the special county tax rate and special local tax rate, shall not exceed 50 cents on the hundred-dollar valuation of all property, real and personal: Provided, this limitation shall not apply to taxes for bonds or other indebtedness which remain an obligation against the district, unless such indebtedness is assumed by the county board of education, and full provisions are made for the payment of the same.

All indebtedness, bonded and otherwise, of said district or districts may be assumed by the county board of education; and such indebtedness, if assumed by the county board of education, shall be paid out of the special county tax levied under the provisions of this article.

Sec. 246. Subsequent Elections Upon Failure of First. In case a majority of qualified voters of said election in any county shall fail to vote for special county tax, on the petition of a majority of the members of the county board of education, the county commissioners may, after six months, order another election in the same manner and under the same rules governing elections for local taxes.

From the foregoing section of article 20, the following points seem clear:

(a) That upon the petition of the county board of education alone, the county commissioners shall call this county-wide election; (b) that whenever the maximum special county tax rate levied under the provisions of this article is less than 50 cents, any local or special charter district can levy an additional local tax rate, provided that its total special tax levy, including the special county tax rate, does not exceed 50 cents; (c) that the county board of education is authorized to assume all indebtedness, bonded or otherwise, of local tax or special charter districts and to pay this indebtedness out of the special county tax levied under the provisions of this article; (d) that this limit of a 50-cent rate applies to supplementing the six months school fund of the county, and does not apply to bonds that are to be voted for the erection of new school buildings called for in this proposed plan; and (e) that in case the first county-wide election, called under the provisions of this article, fails to carry, then after the expiration of six months, upon a petition of the majority of the members of the county board of education, the county commissioners may call another election for the same purpose and in the same manner.

II. ARTICLE 22. AUTHORITY TO ISSUE COUNTY-WIDE BONDS
FOR THE ERECTION OF SCHOOL HOUSES

Sec. 257. Elections; How Called. Whenever the county board of education shall so petition, the board of county commissioners of any county shall order a special election to be held in any county . . . for the purpose of voting upon the question of issuing bonds and levying a sufficient tax for the payment thereof for the purpose of acquiring, erecting, enlarging, altering and equipping school buildings and purchasing sites in such county . . . or for any one or more of said purposes. Said election shall be called and held under the same rules and regulations as provided in this act for “Local Tax Elections” for schools. (Article 17.) The ballots to be used in said election shall have written or printed thereon the words “For the issuance of $____________ school bonds and the levying of a tax for the payment thereof,” and “Against issuance of $____________ school bonds and the levying of a tax for the payment thereof.”

Sec. 258. Bonds; How Issued. If a majority of the qualified voters of said county . . . shall vote in favor of the issuance of said bonds and the levying of said tax, then the board of county commissioners shall have power to issue said bonds, which bonds shall be issued in the name of the county . . . They shall be issued in such form and denominations and with such provisions as to time, place and medium of payment of principal and interest as the said board may determine, subject to the limitations and restrictions of this act. They may be issued as one issue, or divided into two or more separate issues, and in either case may be issued at one time or in blocks, from time to time. The bonds shall be serial bonds and each issue thereof shall so mature and the aggregate principal amount of the issue shall be payable in annual installments or series, beginning not more than three years after the date of the bonds of such issue, and ending not more than thirty years after





such date. No such installment shall be more than two and one-half times as great in amount as the smallest prior installment of the same bond issue. The bonds shall bear interest at a rate not exceeding six per cent per annum, payable semiannually, and may have interest coupons attached, and may be made registrable as to principal or as to both principal and interest. They shall be signed by the chairman of the board of county commissioners, and the seal of the county shall be affixed to or impressed on each bond and attested by the register of deeds of the county or by the clerk of said board, and the interest coupons shall bear the printed, lithographed or etched facsimile signature of such chairman. The delivery of bonds, signed as aforesaid by officers in office at the time of such signing, shall be valid, notwithstanding any changes in office occurring after such signing.

Sec. 259. Bonds; How Sold. The said bonds shall be sold by the board of county commissioners in the manner provided by the Municipal Finance Act then in force for the sale of bonds of cities and towns. They shall not be sold for less than par and accrued interest.

Sec. 260. Proceeds of Bonds. The proceeds derived from the sale of said bonds shall be turned over to the county treasurer, who shall hold same under his official bond, and shall be placed in a separate fund, and paid out for the purpose for which the bonds were issued, only upon order of the county board of education: Provided, that no treasurer handling the funds derived from the sale of any school bonds shall receive any commission therefor.

Sec. 261. Taxes for Interest and Principal. In the event the issue of said bonds is authorized by the voters as above provided, and when same are issued, the board of county commissioners is hereby authorized and directed to levy annually a special tax, ad valorem, on all taxable property in said county . . . sufficient to pay the principal and interest of said bonds as such principal and interest become due. Such special tax shall be in addition to all other taxes authorized to be levied in such county . . . The taxes provided for in this section shall be collected by the county officer collecting other taxes, and paid over by him to the county treasurer, who shall hold same under his official bond, and be applied solely to the payment of principal and interest of said bonds.

Sec. 262. Frequency of Elections. Nothing in this act shall be construed as preventing more than one election and more than one bond issue in the same school district under this act.

From the foregoing sections of article 22 the following points seem clear: (a) That upon the petition of the county board of education alone the board of county commissioners shall order a special election for county bonds for the purpose of acquiring, erecting, enlarging, altering and equipping school buildings and purchasing sites or for any one or more of said purposes; (b) that the bonds shall be serial bonds; (c) that bonds shall bear interest at a rate not exceeding six per cent per annum, payable semi-annually; (d) that bonds shall be sold by county commissioners in the manner provided by Municipal Finance Act; (e) that proceeds from sale of bonds shall be turned over to the county treasurer, placed in a separate fund and paid out by him only upon order of county board of education, and that in paying out this money the treasurer shall receive no compensation therefrom; (f) that in the event the issue of these bonds is authorized by the voters, the county board of commissioners is directed to levy annually a special ad valorem tax on all taxable property in county to take care of principal and interest when due; (g) that this special tax shall be in addition to all other taxes authorized to be levied in the county, and therefore is not subject to the limitations prescribed in article 20 for supplementing the six months school fund of county and for taking care of all outstanding indebtedness, bonded and otherwise.

III. HOW A SPECIAL CHARTER DISTRICT MAY BECOME A LOCAL
TAX DISTRICT, THEREBY BECOMING A PART OF THE COUNTY
SYSTEM OF SCHOOLS.

Article II, Sec. 157. The authorities of a special charter district may have the charter repealed, and the district may become a local tax district in the following manner: The board of trustees of a special charter school may petition the county board of education to assume full jurisdiction of the special charter district, and the county board of education shall grant the petition. Thereupon, the board of trustees of the special charter school shall convey by deed the title to all school property of whatsoever kind to the county board of education. When the deed is recorded in the name of the county board of education, the special charter is hereby repealed, and the special charter district by that act shall become a local tax district, and shall be governed as all other local tax districts are governed. The term of office of each member of the board of trustees of the special charter school shall expire with the transfer of the property, and a district committee shall be elected in accordance with law by the county board of education.

If the board of trustees of the special charter district shall refuse to act, then one-fourth of the freeholders of a special charter district may petition the county board of education for an election to ascertain the will of the people on the question of repealing the charter and becoming a local tax district. If the county board of education shall approve the petition, it shall be presented to the board of county commissioners, which shall call an election of the voters in the special charter district. The laws governing this election shall be the same as the laws governing a local tax election. Those in favor of repealing the charter shall vote a ballot “For repeal of charter,” and those against repeal shall vote a ballot “Against repeal of charter.” If a majority of the votes cast shall be in favor of repeal, the district shall become a local tax district, and the property shall be transferred by the board of trustees to the county board of education.

The provisions of this section shall in no wise affect the authority to levy local taxes theretofore voted by the people of this district, but the same shall remain in full force and effect, notwithstanding the repeal of the charter. Nor shall the provisions of this section affect the validity of the bonded indebtedness of any special charter or incorporated district. The same shall be and remain a charge upon all the taxable property of said district in as full and ample manner as it was before the repeal of the charter.

From the foregoing section of Article II, the following points seem clear: (a) That upon a petition of the board of trustees of a special charter district to the county board of education, the special charter district becomes a local tax district, and is henceforth governed as all other local tax districts in the county are governed; (b) that in case the board of trustees of a special charter district refuse to act, then one-fourth of the freeholders of the special charter district may petition the county board of education for an election to ascertain the will of the people as to repealing the charter and becoming a local tax district; (c) that the authority to levy local taxes theretofore voted by the people of the district is not affected by this section, but is in full force though the special charter be repealed; (d) that the validity of the bonded indebtedness of this special charter district is not affected by the provisions of this section, for this bonded indebtedness shall be and remain a charge upon all the taxable property of the district. However, while this bonded indebtedness does remain a charge upon this district, yet as previously seen in section 245, article 20, all indebtedness, bonded or otherwise of said district or districts may be assumed by the county board of education and be paid out of the special county tax levied under the provisions of article 20.





CHAPTER XVIII
WHAT WILL BE THE TOTAL COST AND TOTAL COUNTY-
WIDE TAX RATE NEEDED TO PUT THIS COUNTY-WIDE
PLAN INTO SUCCESSFUL OPERATION?
I. ESTIMATED TOTAL COST OF TEACHING AND SUPERVISION FOR
AN EIGHT MONTHS SCHOOL TERM

TABLE 69—Showing: (a) Total enrollment in elementary and high schools of county, white and colored for 1922-23; (b) total number of teachers needed for 1923-24, based upon an enrollment of forty pupils per teacher in the elementary schools, and thirty pupils per teacher in the high schools; (c) number of white teachers in each classification to be employed in county based upon the present ratio of each classification to the total number of white teachers now employed in the Kinston schools.
Total number of pupils enrolled in county for 1922-23:
Elementary8,240
High school718
8,958
Total number of teachers needed in county for 1922-23, including two vocational teachers:
Elementary206
High school26
232
Number Class A teachers to be employed in county system64
Number Class B40
Number Class C27
Number Elementary B101

(1) The above estimate includes two negro high school teachers for the county of Class A, and 94 colored teachers of the elementary B Class. While at present only a relatively small per cent of the negro teachers of the county are now able to meet the regular classification of certificate recognized by the State, yet in a few years many of them will doubtless be able to measure up to the requirements of this type of certificate.

TABLE 70—Showing—
Different Classes of Teachers to be EmployedNumber in Each ClassAverage Monthly Salary per Teacher in Each ClassTotal Cost of All Teachers in Each Class for—
1 Month2 Months6 Months8 Months
A64$ 113.60$ 7,270.40$ 14,540.80$ 43,622.40$ 58,163.20
B40100.004,000.008,000.0024,000.0032,000.00
C2795.002,565.005,130.0015,390.0020,520.00
Elementary B10175.007,575.0015,150.0045,450.0050,600.00
Totals232$$ 21,410.40$ 42,820.80$ 128,462.40$ 171,283.20

TABLE 71—Showing: (a) Present total taxable wealth of county; (b) total cost of 232 teachers, one rural school supervisor, one whole-time supervising principal of the city schools of Kinston, the county superintendent, superintendent of Kinston and LaGrange for the six months school term; (c) county-wide tax rate to be levied by county board of education for the six months school term under the proposed plan.
Present total taxable wealth of the county$ 29,250,000.00
Total cost of teaching and supervision for the six-months school term under the proposed plan135,744.40
County-wide tax rate to be levied by County Board of Education for teaching and supervision for the six-months school term46.4 cents

(1) From the above table it will be seen that 46.4 cents will be required to provide the cost of teaching and supervision for the six months school term under the new plan.

(2) For the county rate of 46.4 cents for the six months school term the county board of education will have taken one of the essential steps in providing for all the children of Lenoir County teachers who, approximately, are as well educated and as well trained professionally as these now teaching the children of Kinston.

TABLE 72—Showing—
Present total taxable wealth of county$ 29,250,000.00
Total cost of teaching and supervision for the two months beyond the six-months school term45,258.13
Special county-wide tax rate needed to provide the total cost of teaching and supervision for the two months15.47 cents

(1) From the foregoing table it will be seen that a special county-wide tax rate of less than 16 cents on each one hundred-dollar valuation of property will provide the cost of teaching and supervision for the two extra months in an eight months school term, approximately, as good instruction for all the children in Lenoir County as is now being provided for the children of Kinston.

TABLE 73—Showing—
Present total taxable wealth of county$ 29,250,000.00
Total cost of teaching and supervision for an eight-months school term180,992.53
Total county-wide tax rate including the county tax rate levied by board and county-wide rate voted by people to provide cost of teaching and supervision for an eight-months school term61.87 cents

(1) From the foregoing table it will be seen that the total county tax rate of 61.87 cents on each one hundred-dollar valuation of property will provide for efficient instruction and supervision of the work of all the children of Lenoir County for a school term of eight months.





II. ESTIMATED COST OF ADMINISTRATION, OPERATION, MAINTE-
NANCE, AND OUTLAY PAYMENTS UNDER THE PROPOSED PLAN

TABLE 74—Showing present total current expenditures for these items per pupil in average daily attendance in the Kinston school and the LaGrange school, for the nine months school term.
Total average daily attendance in the Kinston schools and in the LaGrange School2,547
Administration$ 1.14
Operation and maintenance2.79
Outlay payments2.33
Total$ 6.26

(1) The headings in the above table are those upon the blank form sent out by the State Department of Education to the county and city superintendents to be used in making their final reports to this department. And each of these headings includes all the items for which the superintendent of the Kinston school and the superintendent of LaGrange school expended money during the session of 1922-23.

TABLE 75—Showing the total estimated current expenditures for administration, operation and maintenance and outlay payments for the entire county under the proposed plan based upon the present total current expenditures per pupil in daily attendance in the Kinston school and the LaGrange school for the nine months school term.
Present total average daily attendance in all the schools of Lenoir County, rural and urban5,738
Administration$ 6,541.32
Operation and maintenance16,009.02
Outlay payments13,369.54
Total$ 35,919.88

(1) Under the heading Outlay Payments in the foregoing table only for the following items was money expended in the Kinston school and the LaGrange school for 1922-23; (a) new equipment; (b) repairs and replacements; (c) libraries; (d) audit, fuel; (e) insurance; (f) express and drayage. The above includes no expenditure for school buildings or school sites.

TABLE 76—Showing: (a) Present total taxable wealth of county; (b) estimated present current expenditures, including salary for a supervisor of auto trucks and school buildings, for administration, maintenance, operation and outlay payments for the entire county under the proposed plan for the six months school term, based upon the cost per pupil in daily attendance in the Kinston and LaGrange schools for a nine months school term; (c) county-wide tax rate to be levied by county board of commissioners to provide this cost.
Present total taxable wealth of county$ 29,250,000.00
Estimated cost under proposed plan for a six-months school term25,146.58
County-wide tax rate to be levied by County Board of Commissioners to provide this cost for the six-months school term8.594 cents

(1) From the foregoing table it will be seen that all the cost of all the items on the above headings have been prorated for the six months school term. This may not seem entirely satisfactory on the ground that a few of the items included cannot well be prorated for a six months school term inasmuch as the cost would be for a school term of nine months. This is especially true in the case of the cost for taking the census and audit, insurance, and probably true in the case of repairing. These, however, are of small cost in comparison with the cost of fuel and janitor service which extends in some measure through the school term of nine months and can be prorated.

TABLE 77—Showing—
Present total taxable wealth of county$ 29,250,000.00
Estimated cost under the proposed plan for the two months beyond the six-months school term8,382.19
Special county-wide tax to be voted by the people to provide this cost2.87 cents

(1) From the foregoing table it will be seen that the estimated special county-wide tax to be voted by the people to provide the cost of administration, operation, maintenance and outlay payments is 2.87 cents on each one hundred-dollar valuation of property.

TABLE 78—Showing—
Present taxable wealth of county$ 29,250,000.00
Number of additional trucks50
Average cost per truck775.00
Total cost of all additional trucks38,750.00
Estimated total market value of all school buildings and sites to be sold23,000.00
Net cost of additional trucks15,750.00
County-wide tax rate to provide this cost, levied by County Commissioners.0538 cents

(1) While the cost for administration, operation, maintenance and outlay payments for all the schools of the county have been calculated on the per capita cost per pupil in daily attendance in the Kinston and the LaGrange schools for a nine-months school term, yet it may be justifiable in adding to this total cost of operation and maintenance the net cost of all additional trucks needed under the county-wide plan.

(2) From the above table it is seen that the county tax rate needed to provide this cost for all additional trucks is .0538 cents, but as the county commissioners provide for the six months school term and auto trucks are essential in the operation of the six months school term, they will levy the rate.

TABLE 79—Showing—
Present total taxable wealth of county$ 29,250,000.00
Estimated total expenditures for administration, operation, maintenance, and outlay payments for an eight-months school term49,278.77
Total county-wide tax rate needed16.8 cents

(1) From the foregoing table it will be seen that to provide for the above expenditures for an eight months school term a total county-wide tax rate of 16.8 cents on each one hundred valuation will be needed.





TABLE 80—Showing—
Present total taxable wealth of county$ 29,250,000.00
Total of all current expenditures for an eight-months school term230,271.30
Total county-wide tax rate needed to provide these expenditures:
Levied by County Commissioners for the six-months term60.37 cents
Special county-wide tax voted by the people18.34 cents
Total78.7 cents

(1) From the foregoing table it will be seen that the total county-wide tax rate under the proposed plan for conducting an eight months school term is 78.7 cents on each one hundred-dollar valuation of property; and 60.37 cents of this amount is for the six months school term and levied by the county commissioners and that 18.34 cents of this amount is to be voted by the people of the county for the two extra months in the eight months school term.

III. TOTAL OUTSTANDING BONDED INDEBTEDNESS FOR ALL
SCHOOL BUILDINGS ALREADY IN USE IN COUNTY, AND COUNTY-
WIDE TAX RATE NEEDED TO ASSUME THIS INDEBTEDNESS.

TABLE 81—Showing—
Total taxable wealth of county for 1923-24$ 29,250,000.00
Present total outstanding bonded indebtedness for all school buildings370,000.00
Average amount of money to be set aside for the payment of interest and principal on bonds23,531.58
Average county-wide tax rate for the payment of interest and principal of bonds8 cents

(1) Under the resolution passed by the board of trustees of the Kinston school, the total amount to be raised in any one year by taxation for the payment of interest and principal on this recent three hundred thousand bond issue cannot exceed $24,600. This represents the highest amount of interest and principal to be paid in any one year on this bond issue. Since no part of the principal is to be paid until three years after the date of the issuance of these bonds, the town has to provide for the interest only during this period. This annual interest of $15,000 represents the lowest amount of money to be raised by taxation for any one year. The average of the sum of these two amounts, $24,600 and $15,000, which is $19,600, represents the average amount of money to be raised by taxation each year for the payment of interest and principal on these bonds.

(2) In addition to this recent bond issue Kinston District is carrying a seventy-thousand bond issue voted several years ago for the two brick buildings already in use. A tax rate of 2.7 cents is levied annually upon the Kinston District valued at $13,820,655 for the purpose of taking up this bond issue. This tax rate upon this amount of taxable wealth produces annually $3,731.58, and this amount, together with the $19,800, makes a total of $23,531.58 to be raised by taxation each year to pay the interest and principal of the present total bond issue of $370,000.

(3) As will be seen from the table above, a county-wide tax rate of eight cents on each hundred-dollar valuation of property will be required to pay off this outstanding bonded indebtedness of $370,000.

TABLE 82—Showing—
Present total taxable wealth$ 29,250,000.00
Total current expenditures for an eight-months school term and for taking up all outstanding bonded indebtedness for schools253,802.88
Total county-wide tax rate needed for these expenditures86.7 cents

(1) From the above table it will be seen that the total county-wide tax rate needed to provide for all current expenditures for running an eight months school term and for assuming all outstanding bonded indebtedness, is 86.7 cents on each one hundred-dollar valuation of property.

IV. ESTIMATED TOTAL COST OF ALL NEW CONSOLIDATED SCHOOL
BUILDINGS AND TEACHERS’ HOMES*

TABLE 83—Showing—
Name of SchoolNumber of ClassroomsNumber of Other Rooms for Office, Library, and Laboratories, etc.Seating Capacity of AuditoriumCost of Each School BuildingCost of Each Teachers’ HomeTotal Cost
Contentnea Consolidated162600$ 63,000$ 11,000$ 74,000
Woodington Consolidated10240039,0007,50046,500
Moss Hill8235033,0006,50039,500
Deep Run13255053,0009,00064,000
Pink Hill8635044,0006,50050,500
LaGrange12650058,00058,000
Kinston County High School22131,000128,000128,000
Grand total$ 460,500

* Above estimate submitted by an experienced and reputable architect.



V. SUMMARY

TABLE 84—Showing: (a) Different items of expenditure; (b) amount of each expenditure; (c) present total taxable wealth of county; (d) county-wide tax rate levied by commissioners for the six months school term; (e) special county-wide tax rate to be voted by people; (f) grand total of expenditures and grand total county-wide tax estimated to be necessary to put this county-wide plan into successful operation, for a minimum school term of eight months.
Items of ExpenditureAmountsPresent Total Taxable Wealth of CountyCounty-wide Tax Rate to be Levied by Commissioners for Six-months’ TermSpecial County-wide Tax to be Voted by PeopleTotal County-wide Tax Rate
CentsCentsCents
Teaching and supervision for eight-months school term$180,992.53$29,250,00046.415.4761.87
Administration, operation, maintenance, and outlay payments for an eight-months school term49,278.7713.972.8716.84
Estimated amount of money to be set aside annually for payment of interest and principal of the present outstanding indebtedness of $370,00023,531.5888
Payment of annual interest and sinking fund on $360,500 bond issue for all new building bonds bearing 5% running for 40 years21,009.287.27.2
Payment of interest and annual installment on $100,000 borrowed at 4½% for 20 years7,315.622.52.5
Grand totals*282,127.7829,250,00060.3736.04*96.41

*Does not include seating class-room and auditorium.CHAPTER XIX
WILL IT BE TO THE MUTUAL ADVANTAGE OF TOWN
AND COUNTRY TO JOIN IN THIS COUNTY-WIDE PLAN
FOR THE EDUCATION OF ALL THE CHILDREN OF ALL
THE PEOPLE OF THE COUNTY?
I. TOTAL SCHOOL TAX RATE IN VARIOUS LOCAL TAX COMMUNI-
TIES IN THE COUNTY, UNDER THE PRESENT AND UNDER THE
PROPOSED COUNTY-WIDE PLAN

TABLE 85.
Name of CommunityCounty-wide Tax Rate for the Six-months’ School TermLocal Tax Rate Previously Voted by CommunityLocal Tax Rate Being LeviedTotal School Tax Rate Under Present PlanCounty-wide Tax Rate for Six-months’ Term Under Proposed PlanSpecial County-wide Tax Rate to be Voted by County for Two Additional Months and Present School BondsTotal County-wide Tax Rate Under Proposed County-wide Plan for an Eight-months’ School Term and for New Buildings
Sharon4730156260.3736.0496.4
Contentnea4730206760.3736.0496.4
Woodington4730156260.3736.0496.4
Pink Hill4730307760.3736.0496.4
Airy Grove471555260.3736.0496.4
Bethel471555260.3736.0496.4
Hugo473055260.3736.0496.4
Dunn4730206760.3736.0496.4
Hickory Grove473025760.3736.0496.4
Moss Hill4730156260.3736.0496.4
Farm Valley4730125960.3736.0496.4
Daly473055260.3736.0496.4
Grainger473060.3736.0496.4
Fairview471560.3736.0496.4
Byrds473060.3736.0496.4
Institute4730105760.3736.0496.4
Oak View4730156260.3736.0496.4
Sand Hill4730156260.3736.0496.4
LaGrange4735358260.3736.0496.4
Kinston4766⅔bonds 12.7
48*$1.07760.3736.0496.4

*This will be approximately 1.11 in 1924-25.

(1) From the above table it is seen that the county-wide levy for 1923-24 for the six months school term is 47 cents on each one hundred-dollar valuation of property.





(2) It is also seen that practically all but three rural communities voting a local tax rate have voted a 30-cent rate, making a total school tax rate available for these communities of 77 cents. However, as is seen from the table, one rural community only is levying its full local tax rate of 30 cents.

(3) It can be further seen from the above table that the average school tax rate to be paid this year in all the rural local tax districts of the county is approximately 60 cents on each one hundred-dollar valuation of property. This means that the difference between the average school tax rate now being paid in these various rural local tax communities and the school tax rate they would pay under the proposed county-wide plan for an eight months school term is a difference of approximately 36.4 cents.

(4) From the above table it will be seen that the Sharon District is paying for 1923-24 a total school tax rate of 62 cents on each one hundred-dollar valuation of property. For this 62-cent rate it is buying for the children the service of three teachers only. Each teacher is having to teach approximately three grades of work or three times the number of grades taught by any one teacher either in Kinston or LaGrange. For this 62 cents the community is totally unable to buy for these children high school advantages that will enable them, after completing the eleventh grade, to enter any Class A institution in the State. For this present total tax rate of 62 cents the children in this community are attending school in a building which measured by modern standards for a three-teacher school building scored on the basis of 1,000 points, 447 points only. Buildings making such a low score are frequently recommended for abandonment.

For a total school tax rate of 96.4 cents the people of the Sharon community will help to buy the service of sixteen well educated and well trained teachers with a modern teachers’ home upon the school site; will be able to buy for their children two years of splendid high school work in the Contentnea Consolidated School, and two years in the Kinston County High School, graduation from which will enable them with ease to enter any Class A institution in the State. With this 96.4 cents tax rate the people in this community will be able to buy for their children an eight months school term both elementary and high school advantages equal to those enjoyed by the children of Kinston, under the proposed plan.

(5) From the foregoing table it will be seen that the Contentnea community for 1923-24 is paying a total school tax rate of 67 cents on each one hundred-dollar valuation of property. For this total tax rate of 67 cents, this community is buying for its children the service of two teachers only. Each teacher is having to teach from three to three and a half grades each day, or three times the number of grades taught by any one teacher in either Kinston or LaGrange. Under the present plan high school instruction for these children is totally out of the question even if their parents were to pay a total tax rate of $1.00. For this 67-cent total school tax rate, the children of this community are attending school in a building which measured by modern standards for a two-teacher school building scores 620 points only, out of a total possible score of 1,000 points. As 500 points is the dead line below which buildings are frequently recommended for abandonment, it is seen that the present Contentnea building does not reach very far over the dead line for a two-teacher building.

For a total school tax rate of 96.4 cents, the people of this community will be able to buy for their children in teaching service, and in high school building and equipment all the advantages outlined above for the Sharon children.

(6) The Moss Hill community for 1923-24 is paying a total school tax rate of 62 cents. For this tax rate they are buying for their children the service of four teachers only. Each teacher is having to teach on the average at least two and one-half grades of work each day or about two and one-half times

the number of grades now taught by any one teacher either in Kinston or LaGrange. For this tax rate of 62 cents this community will never be able to buy for their children the advantages of an accredited four-year high school. For this total tax rate of 62 cents their children are going to school in a building which, when measured by modern standards for a four-teacher school building, scores 600 points only on a basis of 1,000 points, therefore scoring but little above the dead line below which buildings are frequently recommended for abandonment.

For a total tax rate of 96.4 cents, this community under the proposed plan will be able to purchase for their children the service of a well educated and professionally trained teacher for each of the seven grades in a standard elementary school for an eight months school term and high school advantages in the Kinston County High School.

(7) The Institute community for 1923-24 is paying a total school tax rate of 57 cents. With this tax rate they are buying for their children the service of three teachers only. Each teacher is having to teach each day approximately three grades of work or three times the number of grades taught by any one teacher in the LaGrange school. With their 57 cent tax rate the people of this community are totally unable to buy for their children high school advantages that will enable them after finishing the eleventh grade to enter any Class A institution in the State. Should they raise this tax rate from 57 cents to $1 on each one hundred-dollar valuation of property, they still would be unable, under the present plan, to buy for their children high school advantages in a Class A high school. With the 57-cent tax rate they are now sending their children to school in a building which, when scored by modern standards for a three-teacher building, scores 482 points only on a basis of 1,000 points. Buildings falling below 500 points are frequently recommended for abandonment.

For a total school tax rate of 96.4 cents, this community under the proposed county-wide plan will be able to buy for all the children, those below the high school, and those above the elementary school, the service of twenty-four well educated and well trained teachers in the LaGrange school. With this 96.4 cents total tax rate they will be able to help in buying the service of one teacher for each grade, will help to buy for their children the service of from nine to eleven well educated and well trained high school teachers for a school term of eight months. For this 96.4 cents their children in the primary, grammar grade, and high school will have, for this eight months school term exactly the same advantages enjoyed by the children of LaGrange in efficient teaching and in a modern school building.

(8) The LaGrange School. This community for 1923-24 is paying a total school tax rate of 82 cents for a nine months school term. With this total school tax rate they are buying for their children the service of eight elementary teachers, including the music teacher and five high school teachers only, including the superintendent. At present the community is not able to provide for its pupils a modern high school building adequately equipped.

For a total school tax rate of 96.4 cents the community will be enabled to buy for its children for an eight months school term the advantages previously outlined in Chapter III of Part II, while for a total school tax rate of approximately one dollar they will provide these advantages for their children in a nine months school term.

(9) From the above table it is seen that the city of Kinston is paying for 1923-24 a county-wide tax rate levied by the county commissioners for the six months school term of 47 cents, a local tax rate of 48 cents for current expenditures and a school bond tax of 12.7 cents, or a total rate of $107.7 on each one hundred-dollar valuation of property. When the remaining $100,000 in bonds is sold an additional bond tax rate of at least three cents will be





required. This means that in 1924-25 the total school tax rate in the Kinston District will be at least $1.11 on each one hundred-dollar valuation of property.

(10) From the above table it is also seen that the estimated total tax rate for an eight months school term is 96.4 cents on each one hundred-dollar valuation of property. This tax rate of 96.4 cents includes the cost of teaching, supervision, administration, operation and maintenance and outlay payments, fifty additional trucks, taking over the present outstanding school bonded indebtedness of $370,000 and $460,500 in bonds and loans for the erection of all new school buildings and teachers’ homes under the proposed plan.

(11) The local tax rate of 48 cents levied upon the taxable wealth in the Kinston District is for current expenditures to supplement the six months salary fund for the three additional months. This means an average of 16 cents for each of these three months for current expenditures.

(12) Under the proposed plan the total school tax rate for the Kinston District for 1924-25 would be 96.4 cents plus this 16 cents or a total school tax rate of $1.12 cents. This amount would be correct did it require all of the 16 cents for current expenditures for the ninth month under the proposed county-wide plan. It does not seem reasonable however that such will be the case.

For under the present plan the county board of education is appropriating money to the Kinston schools for the six months school term on the basis of the average per capita cost of teaching throughout the county. Therefore it must seem quite clear that in proportion as the rural schools employ Class A teachers and pay them Class A salaries, in that proportion will the amount of money appropriated by the county board of education to the Kinston schools be automatically increased. On the other hand it must appear equally clear that in proportion as the rural schools cannot employ Class A teachers and pay them Class A salaries for their service, in that proportion will the amount of money appropriated by the county board of education to the Kinston schools be automatically reduced.

The proposed county-wide plan provides for the same percentage of the different classifications of teachers throughout the entire county that now prevail in the Kinston schools and for the payment of these teachers upon the State's salary schedule. This means that instead of 70 per cent, as now, of the white rural teachers holding a certificate no higher than Elementary B grade, 5 per cent only under the proposed plan will hold a certificate that low; that instead of 5 per cent only, as now, of all white rural teachers, including the principal, holding the highest certificate of Class A 46 per cent of all white rural teachers will hold this higher certificate of Class A. Therefore it follows as the night follows the day that on the present basis of appropriating money to the Kinston schools for the six months school term, the amount these schools will receive under the county-wide plan will automatically be increased, thereby making it unnecessary to levy all of this 16 cents for current expenditures for this ninth month.

(13) In providing an eight months school term on the county unit basis, it seems quite reasonable to conclude that the Kinston school and the LaGrange school will receive along with the other schools of the county their equitable part for school administration operation and maintenance for the seventh and eighth month of the school term, thereby again making it unnecessary to levy all of this 16 cents for current expenditures for this ninth school month.

(14) On a reasonable and fair basis of calculation and estimate then, it seems rather difficult to see how under the proposed county-wide plan Kinston District would pay a higher school tax rate for 1924-25 than it would pay under the present plan. It would be easier to see how the total school tax rate for Kinston District for 1924-25 would be less under the proposed than under the present plan.

(15) But again it has been authoritatively stated that by the beginning of 1927 additional buildings will be needed for the children of Kinston even under the present plan. It has been further suggested from the same source that this additional building should be a modern high school building approximating a cost of $300,000. On the present basis this amount will require an additional school tax rate of approximately 12 cents on each one hundred-dollar valuation of property. Under the present plan should there be issued in Kinston in 1927 or 1928 $300,000 in bonds for this modern high school building requiring an additional tax rate of 12 cents, its total school tax rate for 1927-28, instead of being $1.11, will be approximately $1.23 on each one hundred-dollar valuation of property.

(16) From the foregoing statements and calculation the following points seem clear: (a) That the total school tax rate for Kinston District for 1924-25, whether under the present or proposed county-wide plan, will be approximately the same—$1.11: (b) under the present plan the Kinston District will pay for 1924-25 this approximate school tax rate of $1.11, but without provisions for a modern high school building, while under the proposed plan it will pay for 1924-25 this same rate, but with ample provision for a modern high school. For this proposed plan provides for a modern high school building, built upon the unit plan with the first unit of construction containing twenty-two classrooms and six additional rooms for laboratories. This first unit, according to a conservative and reputable architect can be erected at a cost of $128,000 without equipment: (c) should Kinston District after 1927-28, and under the present plan, provide this modern high school building at a cost of $300,000, then the total school tax rate in Kinston District is quite likely to be $1.23, while under the proposed county-wide plan Kinston will have its high school needs at that time amply met and at a conservatively estimated total school tax rate of $1.11 on each one hundred-dollar valuation of property.

From whatever angle the question may be considered, it seems rational and conclusive that the proposed county-wide plan promises to Kinston District a reduction in school tax rate rather than in increase.

II. THE COMMON ECONOMIC AND CIVIC INTEREST OF TOWN AND
COUNTRY PROMOTED IN COUNTY-WIDE PLAN

(1) The Highest Economic and Civic Welfare of Kinston, LaGrange and the Rural Districts are Inseparably One. This is no new thought to the average citizen, whether he live in town or in the rural districts. He realizes full well that should all the farmers of Lenoir County cease to sell their cotton, tobacco, and edible produce in Kinston and LaGrange, and sell these things in other nearby towns; should cease to buy all their supplies at Kinston or LaGrange and buy them elsewhere; should cease entirely all business dealings in these two communities that the day would not be far distant when both Kinston and LaGrange would become hardly more than a flag station of the Norfolk and Southern Railway and hardly more than black dots on the map of the county and State.

The farmer is an indispensable agent in the building up of the towns and cities of the county. By selling his cotton, tobacco and other produce in Kinston and LaGrange and in buying all of his supplies in these communities, he thereby inevitably quickens the arteries of trade, promotes good business, contributes directly and indirectly to the creation of their corporate wealth in all its forms, and constitutes the mud sill upon which its material expansion and material wealth is builded.

The town, however, is equally indispensable to the farmer's highest economic good. In providing a nearby market for his produce and paying him a reasonable profit on what he sells, in providing wholesale and retail stores





conducted by honest, up-to-date and progressive merchants from whom he can buy at a reasonable price the things he needs, in providing banking houses conducted under wise and liberal business management, lending him upon reasonable terms the money he needs for the purchase of land, or for the permanent improvements on his farm, the town becomes an indispensable agent in promoting the material expansion, progress and prosperity of the honest, industrious, frugal and intelligent farmer, Kinston, LaGrange, and the rural districts of the county each constitutes equally essential links in one economic chain, constitutes one financial and economic unity. They all rise together in the scale of material progress and prosperity or they go down together in the slough of business depression. In theory the average citizen of the town and the average citizen of the rural districts readily assent to this reciprocal relationship, this economic inter-dependence, but too frequently in practice each seems to forget that this relationship is fundamental and inevitable.

The average man in the rural community frequently sees his country link only in this county financial unity, over emphasizes the part the rural districts play in determining the economic development, progress and prosperity of the county as a whole. Too frequently his sky line touches the earth where town and country boundary lines meet. In actual practice he, too, frequently sees his county in blocs only, the country as one bloc, the town as an entirely different bloc. Too frequently in practice when the town takes the lead in any county-wide movement, he at once takes counsel of his fears and his suspicions that the town is simply attempting to unload its burden upon his shoulders.

On the other hand the average town man, while readily assenting to the economic unity of town and country, freely admitting this fundamental, inevitable and reciprocal relationship, yet in practice he, too, seems to forget it. Frequently he lets his sky line touch mother earth at the point where the corporate limits of his town ends and the boundary line of the rural part of his county begins. He is an isolationist and believes in the policy of splendid isolation, acts if he were opposed to entangling alliances with the rural districts, except in cases where the farmers have something to sell he wishes to buy or he himself has something to sell he wishes the farmers to buy. Should pupils from these outlying rural districts come into his school and even pay a fair rate of tuition, yet he feels that this is a generous benefaction on the part of his town. And should his town possess the largest proportion of the county's taxable wealth, and by virtue of this fact should a reasonable and just proportion of its school taxes go beyond its limits to help in the education of the children in these outlying country districts, he again feels that his town is a most commendable agency of philanthropy, notwithstanding the fact that the farmers in these outlying districts have, for all these passing years, both directly and indirectly, aided in creating this personal and corporate wealth in his town.

(2) The Producing Power of the Farmer Determines His Purchasing Power, the Amount he can Buy, the Amount he can Pay, and the Promptness with which he Can Pay. This is another fundamental and inevitable fact that both the average farmer and the average town man readily assent to, but which in practice each too frequently seem to ignore. It is doubtless the common experience of merchants, both in Kinston and in LaGrange, that they have customers among the farmers who are unable to pay their accounts at the end of the year. Year after year they carry these accounts on their books and seem unable to collect them. And it sometimes happens that the failure of the farmer to pay his accounts drives the merchant himself into bankruptcy or restricts his credit for the coming year.

In many cases his failure to pay his accounts at the end of the year is not due to his lack of industry and honesty, not due to his lack of economy about his home and upon his farm, nor is it due to poor land on which he has been farming.

I saw my friend Farmer John early one spring morning breaking up his land. His little bob-tail mule was hitched to his little one-horse turning plow. He was barely skimming the surface of mother earth. I saw him later funneling from two hundred to three hundred pounds of guano to the acre steadfastly believing that a larger amount would fire his cotton and ruin his crop. I saw him later as he went out night after night to watch for the particular hang of yonder moon to know when to plant his seed in the soil. And I saw him later barring off his corn deep with his little one-horse turning plow. I saw the shining roots of the growing corn with their mouths split from ear to ear as they lay in the furrow behind him. But my friend Farmer John plowed on, all unmindful of the harm he had done. His cotton was growing upon land to which he had planted cotton for so many years in succession that now the bumble-bees all over John's farm had been compelled to burrow a hole in the soil to get down low enough to enjoy the sweet juice of the blossom.

I was there at housing time, and my friend told me that his cotton averaged one-half bale to the acre, his tobacco from four hundred to five hundred pounds to the acre, while his corn crop averaged from two and one-half to three and one-half barrels to the acre.

I went with my friend Farmer John to his corn crib; there was hardly enough nubbins to last till next corn-hilling time. I went with him to his smokehouse; there were his little hams hanging few and far between. I counted his potato hills. There were three, and they were filled with slips. I went with him to his wheat bin, but it was empty.

My friend Farmer John was not a lazy man. In the early spring time and during the growing season he was out in his field behind Old Bill from early morn till dewy eve. Mary, his wife, was not lazy. At break of day she was always up and about the family breakfast. And soon after sun up she, too, was out in the cotton or tobacco field working side by side with John and the children. In the spring time John had to take Bobbie out of school to hoe and to plow. At housing time he again had to keep Bobbie out of school to help him to pull the corn, to grade and tie tobacco and to pick the cotton. John and Mary are not extravagant in their home; luxuries are unknown; comforts are almost a stranger, and even the bare necessities of life are not always promptly met.

And yet, after all of John's toil through the year; after the toil and hardship of Mary from break of day till late after the going down of the sun; after having to take Bobbie out of school at the first blush of spring, and keep him out until late in the fall; after all this struggle, this sweat and grind, John with his half a bale of cotton to the acre only, with his four or five hundred pounds of tobacco to the acre only, is now unable to pay all his grocery bill, for the clothes that have protected him, Mary and Bobbie from the weather; unable to pay all his fertilizer bill, and is unable to pay any part on account with the doctor for attending little Sallie when she had typhoid fever last summer.

And you ask, what is the matter with my friend Farmer John? It is not unwillingness to meet his accounts promptly; it is not dishonesty; not laziness; not wastefulness; not extravagance; not exceedingly poor land. The one fundamental fact back of all John's failure is the fact that with the education, training, and skill represented by a fifth-grade education only, John has been unable to teach the soil that he has plowed and hoed to yield more than one-half a bale of cotton to the acre, more than four hundred pounds of tobacco to the acre, and the sale of these meagre crops have not netted enough





to meet his obligations for even the barest necessities of life. The producing power of my friend John is determining the amount he can buy, and the promptness with which he can pay for what he buys.

But the tragedy does not stop here. Bobbie is following in the footsteps of his father. He has not been to school since he finished the fifth grade. Seventy-eight per cent of the total rural enrollment is now within the first five grades. Bobbie's school days are over now. Soon he, too, will become a farmer out there in the old neighborhood. Soon he, too, will be buying on time from the son of the merchant from whom John has been buying. And Bobbie, with the education, training and skill represented by a fifth grade education only, will be unable to teach each acre of the soil he is plowing and hoeing, to yield for him much more than it did for his father. Bobbie will lack the education and training to profit from the most modern and progressive methods in farming. He will be unable to meet the strong competition of the time. He is running behind in his accounts now just as his father did. He is behind in his accounts to the son of the merchant to whom his father was always hopelessly in debt. He has for years been unable to pay a penny on his account with the son of the doctor who attended his little sister Sallie when she was critically ill.

“The United States Department of Agriculture* made a study recently to find out to what extent the farmer's education affected his prosperity. This study covered a large number of farmers in Iowa, Illinois, and Indiana. These farmers were divided into four groups on the basis of their education. A comparison of the earnings of each group was then made, with these significant results: Those farmers who had practically no education made no profit for the year; instead they showed an average yearly loss of $586 each. The farmers having an eight-year elementary education, such as the rural schools give, made an average yearly labor income of $301 per year. Those having a four-year high school education in addition to an elementary education, made an average annual labor income more than twice as large as those having only the eight-year elementary education. Those having a college education made an average annual labor income 22 per cent greater than those who had not gone beyond the high school. No doubt other factors, such as differences in natural ability and in farming conditions enter in, but the relation between education and financial success on the farm is so marked that education must be recognized as one of the most important factors in producing prosperity on the farm today.

“Better schools for the farmer mean better prosperity for the farmer. Better prosperity for the farmer means better prosperity for the merchant, the banker, the teacher; better prosperity for us all—we all go up or we all go down with the farmer. Hence we all have a very direct personal interest in bringing the straggling rural schools up to modern standards and putting the education of the farm group on an equal basis with that of the rest of the people of the State.”

Aside from a worthy human interest, aside from social justice, from the standpoint of the enlightened self-interest alone, would it not be a mighty fine thing for Kinston and LaGrange, were they able by some magic wand to transform the producing power of all the little Bobbies and Marys in Lenoir County who are to constitute its future rural citizenship from an average of one-half bale of cotton to the acre to an average of one bale and a half to each acre planted, were able to transform their producing power of an average of five or six hundred pounds of tobacco to an acre to an average of twelve hundred pounds of tobacco to an acre, thereby increasing the purchasing power of this future rural citizenship by this same ratio of one hundred per cent. And would it not be a finer achievement still for these two splendid communities

*The Journal of Rural Education.—May Campbell.

were they able by this same magic wand to raise to a corresponding level the intellectual outlook, the social, moral, civic sympathies and activities of this same future citizenship to whom it is bound by these inseparable economic and civic ties?

Fortunately Kinston and LaGrange do not have to rely upon Aladdin's Lamp for this most desired transformation. This magic wand is at hand. It is the untiring coöperation, the progressive and constructive leadership, of every club of whatever sort, of every individual citizen in each of these splendid communities; it is the combined coöperation and constructive leadership of both Kinston and LaGrange clasping, across their border lines, the hands of the coöperative and constructive forces from the rural districts of the county in one determined county-wide movement for the establishment of a modern, efficient system of schools through which will come this transforming power in the lives of this future citizenship not only in the country, but in the towns as well.

(3) The Rural Districts of the County Constitute One of the Indispensable Reservoirs from which Both Kinston and LaGrange will Draw their Future Manpower. This has been so in the past, it is so in the present, and will continue to be so in the future. In a few years from now boys and girls today growing up in these rural communities will be coming across the corporate limits of Kinston and LaGrange to take their place in the various occupations and walks of life.

And when these country boys and girls come, shall they come equipped not only to put their own weight, but to add something of value to the community's common good? Or, shall they come untrained, and unequipped not only to pull their own weight, but to be a millstone about the neck of the community into which they have come? Shall they come from those little and inefficient schools, and with that education, training and skill represented by a fourth or a fifth grade education only? Shall they cross the corporate limits of the town with their sky line close to the ground, their intellectual outlook blurred, their social, civic and moral sympathies unawakened, and therefore coming to cast their ballot and their influence with those who in season and out of season endeavor to thwart and to throttle the highest community good? Or shall these boys and girls, this future manpower, come from those large, modern and efficient schools with capable and efficient teachers, who have taken them through the elementary and high school, who have prepared and equipped them to make a successful living wherever they may go, broadened their outlook upon life, developed in them keen appreciation of things most worth while, quickened their sense of civic righteousness and instilled into them the power and habit of noble purpose and steadfast resolve?

The coming of this future manpower into Kinston and LaGrange from these outlying districts is going to be felt in one direction or another. From this there is no escape. But in what direction will its coming be felt? That's the question! And it is a question, too, that the parents of the children now growing up in those towns cannot lightly brush aside.

Today Kinston and LaGrange are taxing themselves generously for school building, school equipment, and for teaching service, that their children may have an ample opportunity to become the finest thing in life it is possible for them to become, and to make the finest contribution to the life of the community, the county and the State, it is possible for them to make. But, from the standpoint of social justice, from the standpoint of even enlightened self-interest, can they brush aside an opportunity to join in county-wide coöperation in meeting the vocational needs, in ministering to the intellectual, social, civic





and moral needs of those now on the outside, but many of whom in a few years to come will be on the inside of the town, hindering or promoting the economic, moral and social values of their own children for whom now they are so generously spending and being spent?

But, on the other hand, is it not of equal importance to the parents of the children now growing up in these rural communities, that when their children shall have grown into manhood and womanhood, shall have taken their places in Kinston and LaGrange to add their finest contribution in the upbuilding of these communities, they shall find there a citizenship, equally intelligent, coöperative, progressive and constructive as themselves, whose support of law and order, and whose appreciation of all the finer things of life are equal to their own?

Hence it is, from whatever angle one views the question, whether from the standpoint of material development and expansion, whether from the standpoint of a progressive and constructive leadership, Kinston, LaGrange and the rural districts are inseparably one. And in the launching of a county-wide plan having for its avowed object the enhancement and promotion of those common, vital and reciprocal interests, not one with complacency can say to the others, “I have no need of thee, for whether one member suffer, all the members suffer with it, or one member be honored, all the members rejoice with it.”

CHAPTER XX
SUMMARY OF FINDINGS AND CONCLUSIONS

From the weight of evidence presented in the foregoing chapters, the following conclusions appear sound:

(1) That under the present district plan of education the educational needs of the rural children of Lenoir County are not being met, and cannot be met.

(2) That the school buildings in which the pupils are attending school are, in many instances, inadequate for school purposes and should be abandoned.

(3) That the daily cost of teaching is relatively high.

(4) That because of inequalities in school population, and inequalities in the amount of taxable wealth in the various districts of the county, if all the children of the people are ever to enjoy, even approximately, equality of educational opportunity in equipping themselves for the manifold duties of efficient citizenship, the county itself must become the unit of taxation for an equal length of school term throughout the county, must become the unit of consolidation, embracing, in one unified county system, standard elementary and standard high schools for all the children, rural and urban alike; must become the unit of taxation for all money borrowed and for all bonds issued for the erection of consolidated school buildings and teachers’ homes, and must become the unit in school administration and school supervision.

(5) That in the proposed county-wide plan all the present forty-five white schools, including both rural and urban, are consolidated into seven schools only, all conducted for a minimum school term of eight months. These seven schools include three standard elementary schools with at least one teacher for each of the seven grades, and one standard elementary school with two years of efficient high school instruction and three standard high schools, the Kinston County High School, the LaGrange High School, and the Pink Hill High School, made easily accessible to all the children of the county by auto transportation.

(6) That this proposed county-wide plan becomes operative through the voting of a special county-wide tax under Article 20, for an equal length of school term for all schools in the county; through the voting of a county-wide bond issue under Article 22, for the erection of all new, consolidated school buildings in both town and country; and through the special charter districts becoming a part of the county system as provided for in Article 11 of the Public School Laws of 1923.

(7) That the grand annual total cost of putting this county-wide plan into operation, for an eight months school term, including a total of annual current expenditures, the annual amount set aside for taking care of the $370,000 in bonds previously voted for schools, the annual amount to be set aside to take care of the $460,000 in money borrowed or bonds voted for the erection of all new consolidated school buildings in town and country under proposed plan is estimated at $282,098.63.

(8) That the total county-wide tax rate needed to put this plan into operation is 96.4 cents, including a 60-cent rate to be levied by the commissioners for the six months school term and the 36.04-cent rate to be voted as a special tax rate by the people of the county.

(9) That because the economic and civic interest of town and country are inseparably one, it will be to their mutual advantage to join in this county-wide program.





(10) What this proposed county-wide plan will mean to all the children of all the people in Lenoir County in comparison with the educational opportunities they now have under the present plan may be seen in the parallel columns below:

EDUCATIONAL OPPORTUNITIES UNDER PRESENT DISTRICT PLANEDUCATIONAL OPPORTUNITIES UNDER PROPOSED COUNTY-WIDE PLAN
(1) In 60 per cent of the white one-teacher schools, 31.6 per cent of the two-teacher schools, no provision on teachers’ daily schedule for writing.(1) All schools will make proper provision for writing.
(2) One hundred per cent of rural schools without provision for regular instruction in music.(2) Will be practical for a large number rural children to have good instruction in music.
(3) Sixty per cent of the one-teacher schools, 53 per cent of two-teacher schools, 33⅓ per cent of three-teacher schools, make no provision for the teaching of agriculture.(3) All rural pupils above seventh grade have splendid opportunity for study of agriculture.
(4) One hundred per cent of rural schools show no provision for domestic art, for cooking, sewing, home-making and home-keeping.(4) All girls above seventh grade will have splendid opportunity for first-class instruction in domestic arts.
(5) Average school term, six months.(5) Minimum school term, eight months.
(6) Average of three to four grades for each teacher.(6) One teacher, one grade.
(7) Average number daily classes per teacher, 21.(7) Average number daily classes per teacher, 8 to 9.
(8) Average number minutes for each daily class, 18.(8) Average number minutes per daily class, 26.
(9) Pupils in fourth, fifth, sixth, seventh grades in reading from one to two years below where they should be according to standardized tests.(9) Majority of pupils brought approximately up to standard in reading.
(10) Pupils in the fifth and sixth grades in arithmetic one year behind in their achievement.(10) Majority of pupils in fifth and sixth grade approximately up to standard in arithmetic.
(11) Pupils not properly classed in accordance with their ability to advance; 60 per cent of the enrollment placed from one to three grades below where they should be.(11) Proper gradation and classification of pupils now become practical.
(12) Seventy-eight per cent of entire white rural enrollment within first five grades.(12) Estimated 63 per cent only within the first five grades.
(13) Ninety-four and five-tenths per cent of total enrollment within first seven grades.(13) Estimated at not more than 73 per cent below high school enrollment.
(14) Five and eight-tenths per cent only of total rural enrollment above seventh grade.(14) Estimated at 20-21 per cent of total enrollment in high school.

EDUCATIONAL OPPORTUNITIES UNDER PRESENT DISTRICT PLANEDUCATIONAL OPPORTUNITIES UNDER PROPOSED COUNTY-WIDE PLAN
(15) Favored few only in reach of a Class A four-year high school.(15) Every child in county in easy riding reach of an accredited Class A four-year high school by means of auto transportation.
(16) Percentage of total seventh grade enrollment completing seventh grade, 29 per cent.(16) Estimated total enrollment completing seventh grade, 67 per cent.
(17) Average age of pupils completing seventh grade 14 years and 2 months.(17) Estimated age of pupils completing seventh grade at 12½ to 13 years of age.
(18) Requires from one and a half to two years to complete one grade of work.(18) Pupils now completing a grade each year.
(19) Nineteen per cent only of total white enrollment of normal age for their grade.(19) Estimated at from 40 to 50 per cent of normal age for their grade.
(20) Teachers as a whole poorly equipped for efficient teaching, 70 per cent holding elementary B certificates only.(20) Estimated at 5 per cent only holding as low as Elementary B certificates.
(21) Five per cent only of all white rural teachers, including principals, holding highest certificate of Class A.(21) Estimated at 46 per cent holding this highest class certificate.
(22) With from three to seven grades to teach each day with from 19 to 32 daily classes to hear, careful preparation on part of teacher of each lesson she teaches wholly out of question.(22) With one grade only, with from 8 to 10 classes a day only, teacher can make careful preparation of each lesson she teaches.
(23) Hearing lessons, hearing pupils recite what they tried to learn at their seats or at home is the prevailing substitute for teaching.(23) Teaching children instead of “hearing lessons” is now the rule.
(24) Each teacher practically a law unto herself in the amount of work required of children before promoting them from one grade to another. About as many different standards for promoting children from seventh grade to high school as there are seventh grade teachers in county.(24) Work of the elementary school unified and standardized. Pupils completing seventh grade in one school have no trouble in entering eighth grade in any school in county.
(25) Careful, systematic and efficient supervision of the work of the teachers out of question because of many administrative duties of county superintendent and the 390 square miles over which 42 separate white schools are scattered.(25) Constant, helpful and efficient supervision of the work of the teachers is provided through the employment of a capable rural school supervisor to assist superintendent.





EDUCATIONAL OPPORTUNITIES UNDER PRESENT DISTRICT PLANEDUCATIONAL OPPORTUNITIES UNDER PROPOSED COUNTY-WIDE PLAN
(26) Each separate school more or less a system in itself, in its organization, management and work. Practically 42 different systems of schools in county.(26) The 42 separate schools consolidated into seven large, efficient schools organized into one unified county system of schools.
(27) Average number of pupils for each grade outside of Pink Hill, 6.(27) Estimated at from 23 to 28.
(28) But few opportunities for developing habit of team work; but few opportunities for classroom, literary and athletic contests, for wholesome rivalry and emulation.(28) Ample opportunity for team work, in contests of all sorts, for friendly competition and worth-while emulation.
(29) School spirit indifferent and feeble.(29) School spirit loyal and buoyant.
(30) But little incentive to habits of promptness in the performance of school duties and regularity in school attendance.(30) Genuine interest in life and work of school, and having to meet the auto truck on time or be left, all promote habits of punctuality in the performance of school duties.
(31) In walking to and from school children are liable to be subjected to those offenses to decency and good morals.(31) In riding to and from school on the truck children are under the constant oversight of a reliable driver.
(32) In walking to school from one to two and a half miles through mud and slush, and having to sit for a large part of the day with wet feet and clothing, children are subject to colds, pneumonia and other sickness.(32) Riding to school in a comfortable auto truck, reaching the schoolhouse even in bad weather with feet and clothing practically dry, health of children now being promoted.
(33) Sixty-nine per cent of all white rural school buildings measured by modern standards recognized and accepted throughout America are found inadequate for school purposes, in sanitation, hearing, lighting, ventilation and water supply.(33) All school buildings Class A construction, modern in heating, lighting, ventilation, sanitation, equipment, comfort and attractiveness.
(34) Teachers find it difficult to secure comfortable, sanitary and congenial boarding place near school building.(34) Teachers live in modern teachers’ home erected on school site. Teachers are provided with modern comforts and congenial companionship.
(35) With the large number of grades to teach each day, with the large number daily classes to hear, teachers are getting but little joy out of their work.(35) With one grade only, with from 8 to 10 classes only a day, teachers have the feeling they are doing work really worthwhile and are happy in their teaching.

EDUCATIONAL OPPORTUNITIES UNDER PRESENT DISTRICT PLANEDUCATIONAL OPPORTUNITIES UNDER PROPOSED COUNTY-WIDE PLAN
(36) With the large number of grades to teach each day, difficulty in securing a congenial boarding place near the school house, with a six months school term only, with a correspondingly low monthly and annual salary, the best trained teachers are not seeking these positions nor are they likely to do so in the future.(36) With one grade only to teach, living in a modern teachers’ home that is comfortable, with companionship that is congenial, with an eight months school term, with a monthly and annual salary in keeping with their academic and professional training, many of our best trained teachers are being secured and kept for these county children.
(37) To get their children into an accredited Class A four-year high school, parents are frequently having to send their children away from home, pay their board and tuition or both, having to rent out the old home place and move to town.(37) Wherever a child lives in the county he is guaranteed the advantages of an accredited Class A high school to which he can ride to and from each day in a comfortable auto truck and to which he can go without a penny of board or tuition for an eight months school term.
(38) The farm home is not the ideal place in which to bring up children prepared to meet the demands of good citizenship in this modern age. In these little schools the ambitious boys and girls are not led to see and appreciate the opportunities and possibilities of country life, and are leaving the old home place as soon as they are of age.(38) The farm is now the ideal place in which to bring up children. In the large consolidated school, with its large number of capable teachers with the practical and enriched course of study, country boys and girls are being taught to see the opportunities and possibilities of country life and are becoming more contented to live there, having well cultivated farms and happy homes of their own.
(39) Equality of educational opportunity with the children of towns and cities of county cannot be entertained even as a rational hope.(39) Equality of educational opportunities with the children of the town and cities for at least an eight months school approximately realized.
(40) LaGrange High School not standard.(40) A standard high school.
(41) Four whole-time high school teachers only.(41) Estimated at from 9 to 11 efficient high school teachers within present ten-year period.
(42) High school course of study limited and inadequate.(42) High school course broadened and enriched, amply preparing pupils for college entrance and providing practical vocational courses for those not going to college.





EDUCATIONAL OPPORTUNITIES UNDER PRESENT DISTRICT PLANEDUCATIONAL OPPORTUNITIES UNDER PROPOSED COUNTY-WIDE PLAN
(43) Without a modern high school building.(43) Modern high school building adequately constructed and equipped with laboratories, library and all apparatus needed for a high type of instruction.
(44) Kinston High School practically a district high school, serving primarily the needs of the children of the Kinston district only.(44) A county high school serving equally the Kinston children and children in the surrounding territory for an eight months school term.
(45) High school enrollment approximately 380.(45) Estimated high school enrollment within present ten-year period of from 850 to 1,000.
(46) Number whole-time high school teachers, 16.(46) Estimated at from 30 to 35 efficient high school teachers within present ten-year period.
(47) High school course of study, teachers and equipment not ample enough to meet the varying needs of all the pupils who attend.(47) High school course of study broad enough, rich enough, practical enough, teachers and equipment enough to meet approximately the needs of all the pupils in attendance.
(48) Interests of town children and country children are stratified. There is the county child with his characteristic set of interests, his outlook on life and with his sterling qualities. There is the town child with his characteristic set of interests, his outlook on life and his fine qualities. Each group is growing up to become Lenoir County citizens, but without a common interest in, or genuine appreciation of the fine qualities in the life of the other. And each group, too, is growing up without the power and habit of hearty and effective coöperation with the other in achieving worthy ends.(48) With more than 1,000 high school boys and girls from the country, and from the town, mingling day after day, in the three standard high schools—Kinston, LaGrange and Pink Hill—competing in friendly and wholesome rivalry in classroom, in literary and in athletic contests of all sorts, each will come to appreciate and to profit by the sterling qualities in the other; and there will be developed in this future Lenoir County citizenship a wide-a-wake consciousness of common interests and common ties, the power and habit of hearty, intelligent and effective county-wide coöperation in achieving worth-while county-wide objectives.

(11) To Lenoir County the successful operation of this proposed county-wide plan will mean:

(a) A larger per cent of the revised school census in daily attendance, thereby preventing future illiteracy.

(b) A larger per cent of this revised census completing the work of both a standard elementary and a standard high school, thereby guaranteeing to the county a citizenship well educated and well trained and efficient.

(c) Educational opportunities and cost of schooling equalized throughout the county for an eight months school term.

(d) Communities of small wealth enabled to receive their rightful share of the corporate wealth they have directly and indirectly helped to create in the towns and cities of the county.

(e) Communities of larger wealth enabled to share a just and equitable part of their corporate wealth and educational advantages with the communities in the county less favored than themselves.

And her many material advantages—healthful climate, fertile soil, unsurpassed county system of hard surface roads, Lenoir County will crown with a unified, modern and efficient system of county schools, guaranteeing a well educated, well trained, happy and worthy citizenship, that will enhance her present material wealth, social and civic, moral and intellectual values throughout her confines, challenging the admiration of the State and attracting into her borders progressive and desirable citizens from the various walks of life, seeking farms, homes and business opportunities among a hospitable, progressive and prosperous people.

















Title
Survey of the public schools of Lenoir County
Description
Survey of the public schools of Lenoir County / by L.C. Brogden ... [et al.]. Raleigh [N.C.] : State Superintendent of Public Instruction, 1924. 233 p. : ill., maps, charts ; 24 cm. (Educational publication (North Carolina. Dept. of Public Instruction) no. 73).
Date
1924
Original Format
books
Extent
Local Identifier
L184.B2 NO. 73
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Spatial
Location of Original
Joyner NC Stacks
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Comments

MARSHALL TAYLOR Apr 26 2017

The Taylor School on page 113 is owned by my Sister now. We are trying to keep it preserved as much as possible. We would like to know if the picture in this book is available for print.

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